Don't Ask Me How Fortune Found Me
by mush14meyers
Summary: Jude, Haze, needs to forget her bad memories of New York City. She turns to the Newsies for help and falls in love with someone she can't seem to get along with.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the newsies except for Haze.

Okay, so I had this one on here for a while, but it had an error or something, so I decided to repost it. This time I'm putting it into chapters so it's not unbelievably long. Hope you like it :)

I don't know what was going through my mind. I was upset and angry about everything that had happened in the last few months. I guess I just felt like all of it was extremely hard to deal with. Everyone was gone now and I was tired of fending for myself.

I didn't know what I was trying to do, but it was obvious that I wasn't thinking clearly. I inched even closer towards the end of the wooden dock. No one was around. It was dead silent, and the only thing I could hear was my ragged breathing.

The setting sun made it possible for me to see my own reflection in the water. As I stared at it, the small ripples by the pier distorted the image. Honestly, it scared me. Before I knew what I was doing, I kicked my feet off from the dock.

My heart skipped a beat before I even hit the water.

I could easily lie to people without flinching. Once in a while, if it was completely necessary, I could pick-pocket someone without them even noticing. But swimming. Swimming was not one of my strong points. Not at all. I was terrified of the water.

I was submerged under the water within seconds and I heard the splash I had made at the surface. However, it was muffled as my ears filled up with water.

Then I really began to panic. I opened my eyes under water. Although the salt in the water stung my eyes, I forced myself to keep them open. A murky navy blue color surrounded me.

I thrashed to get up to the surface. My head bobbed above water twice. I tried to stay above long enough to get air, but I just kept inhaling mouthfuls of water.

I could feel myself starting to sink again. My heart felt like it was about to beat out of my chest as I panicked. The water got darker and darker the lower I got, and I didn't feel like I had enough strength to hold my eyes open any longer.

I heard another muffled splash, but my mind was too foggy to process it. I stopped thrashing and relaxed, letting my arms and legs drift freely. My surroundings starting going black around me. The last thing I remembered was feeling an arm around my waist, pulling me upward.

My eyes were forced open by a hard push to my stomach. The light burned my eyes and everything spun for a few seconds. I began coughing and I rolled over onto my side, spitting up water.

When all of the salt water had been emptied from my body, I let my head drop down again. I tried to catch my breath.

I looked up and saw a silhouette against the yellow light from the sun. It took a second for my eyes to adjust. A boy about 15 was hovering over me. He was sopping wet and trying to catch his breath, also. The first thing I noticed about him was his brown eyes. Even though he was a teenager, his eyes had a childish gleam to them.

"You'se... Alright... there..?" He asked, in between gasps for air. He had a heavy New York accent. But then again, so did everyone else who wasn't high class around here. Before I answered, I tilted my head to the side to see where I was.

I was lying on the wooden dock on my back. I was in a puddle of water that had drained off from my body and clothes.

"Yeah, I'm fine..." I said, sitting up. He moved away from me and sat down with his back against one of the wooden dock pillars. He took off his dark-colored cap and wrung it out, squeezing all the water out.

I was starting to get a huge headache, probably from lack of oxygen. I rested my head against my knee. I was still really dizzy, and I felt kind of drowsy.  
"I dunno 'bout that..." he said. "You was thrashin' around pretty bad in that wata'." He motioned towards the water with his head, before putting his hat back on.

"That's because I can't swim." I replied, as if it was obvious. "Then what were you doin' in there?" he asked, eyeing me closely. I had to admit, I was surprised. I didn't think he would interrogate me like that.

"I..." I paused for a second, but quickly regained my confidence. "I tripped and fell in." I replied, shrugging as if it weren't a big deal. I thought I had him convinced, but he asked me another question "What we're you doin' 'round here anyways?"

"What is this, an interrogation?!" I said, raising my voice. He looked surprised at my sudden outburst. He put his hands up as if defending himself. "All right, all right... Don't get offended or nuttin'," he said, standing up and starting to walk off the dock. He shoved his hands in his pockets. "Ya welcome..." he called over his shoulder.

I shook my head and sighed. As I watched him leave, I found myself smiling a little.

The last remaining rays of sun for the day warmed my body. A combination of the summer warmth and all the thrashing I had done to trying to stay above water had made me exhausted.

I really didn't want to get up from the dock. I was comfortable enough lying there resting my head in my arms. Besides... I had nowhere to go anyway so I was in no rush.

When the sun had completely disappeared behind the buildings in the distance, the temperature began to drop. I started to shiver because my clothes were still damp.

Sitting up, I pulled my clinging wet hair away from my face. I tried my best to tie it into a knot, but it was no use. It just kept falling out. Sighing, I used all my strength to bring myself to my feet. Hopefully I could find a warmer place to rest for the night.

I walked along the pier looking for nothing in particular. Eventually, I walked past a dock where loud laughing and splashes could be heard from the water. It sounded like a large group of guys. I didn't bother looking up from my feet, though.

I stopped short when something was placed in front of me to block my path. It was a black walking stick or a straight cane. I took a quick glance at the person who had put it there.

He looked about 15 or 16. He was small for a boy his age, but he was still a few inches taller than me. "Uh... excuse me." I said, taking a step to the right of him. As I tried to walk around him, he blocked my path again. This time with his body.

"Who are you?" he asked quickly. "None of your business." I stated, moving to the left. Again, he blocked me. I sighed and cross my arms. Bringing my gaze up to him again, I took a closer look at him. He had grayish blue eyes and wore red suspenders over a beige shirt.

"A'tually, it is me business. See, this here's my territory. And judgin' by the fact that you'se soakin' wet wanderin' Brooklyn as it's getting' dark, I would assume you've got nowheres to go." He said.

"Yeah, well I can take care of myself..." I mumbled, getting impatient. I tried to move around him again. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him stare at me as if I had insulted him. "Do ya know who I am?" He demanded. I shrugged and shook my head. "No, I don't. I really don't wanna, neither. So if you'll let me leave now..." I replied. "I'm Spot Conlon." He said, interrupting me.

I turned my head immediately and looked at him again. I had obviously heard of him before. Everyone in Brooklyn had. Hell, almost everyone in all of New York City had. _**That's **Spot Conlon? _I thought. _He's so small... Then again, he's being really intimidating..._

I immediately tried to act like I wasn't surprised. "Yeah, what's your point?" I spat out. He chuckled to himself. "If you'se never hoid of me, then you'se never met a newsie before."

I raised my eyebrow. "Of course I've met a newsie before. I've even sold a few papes myself. Not anymore, though." I said. "Oh yeah? Why aren't ya still sellin', then? Doesn't look like you've got much room to be picky about jobs." He said, motioning at my worn out clothes.

I rolled my eyes. "Maybe it wasn't gettin' me where I needed to go." I replied, starting to walk away. "Maybe..." he said, stepping in front of me. "you'se wasn't sellin' right. However, I can teach ya. I happen to know a lot about bein' a newsie."

_Man, people were right... there really is no end to this guy's ego. _"No. thanks." I replied, stepping away again. This time he didn't try to stop me. "Fine. Just tryin' to help ya." He said from behind me. "But hey, if ya don't think you'se can do it... then whatever." I stopped short and turned around.  
"Of course I think I can do it!" I yelled. This kid was a huge pain in my ass. "Oh yeah?" he smirked. "Then prove it. Gimme a week. If you'se don't think you like sellin' papes then, fine. Then you'se can leave and do whatever you want."

_Why is he so stubborn with this?! What does he care if I sell papes or not. _"I would love to prove you wrong, Spot Conlon. But see, I can't. I don't gots no place to live. So I wander around a bit. I can't guarantee when I'll be around." I said.

"Yeah, well looks like you're in luck." He said, smirking again. "The lodgin' house gots an empty bunk wit your name on it... whatever ya name might be."

I sighed. I sold a few newspapers before, and I didn't particular like it. I really didn't want to do this, but there was no way I was letting this guy get the satisfaction of thinking I couldn't do it. "Fine." I replied.  
"Good. Stick around heah for a few more minutes. We'll be goin' back to the lodging house soon." He said, beginning to walk away. "My name's Jude, by the way..." I called after him.

Spot paused for a second. He didn't say anything to me but he nodded. Then he turned around and resumed his spot on the crates overlooking the water.

Please review if you can. Thanks for reading.


	2. Chapter 2

Hi there. Hows it going? Good? Good.

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the newsies except for Haze. Wish I did, but don't. Oh well.

So here it goes.

"Here." Spot said, tossing me a pile of clothes. "Change into dese until we can get you some of ya own." He pointed to a washroom that was connected to the bunk room.

I nodded and picked up the pile of clothes. I changed in one of the stalls. The clothes were loose on me, but it still felt good to get out of my damp clothing. I quickly braided my wet hair so it wouldn't cling to my back and make me cold.

When I came back into the bunkroom, Spot turned to me. "Come wit me." he said, walking across the room. The Brooklyn newsies were looking at me, wondering why I was there. Still, they didn't mention anything about it.  
Spot opened a window and climbed out. I followed him. "Hang your clothes heah. Dey should be dry by mornin'." I draped my clothes over the railing of the fire escape. I turned around to go back inside, but Spot stopped me.

"Listen..." he said, lowering his voice. "As you prob'ly noticed, you'se the only goil heah. I don't think they will, but if any of da guys try anythin'..." He stopped talking for a second. "Uh huh?" I said, waiting for him to finish. "Just let me know. And they'll have to ansa' to me."

I stared at him for a second. Why was he trying to protect me? He turned his back to me and went through the open window again.

"Alright boys. Listen up." Spot said. The group of newsies immediately stopped talking and looked up at him. "Dis..." he said, grabbing my arm and pulled me next to him, "Is Jude. She's gonna be stayin' here and sellin' for a while. If ya know what's good for ya, don't try anything, got it?" They all nodded quickly and mumbled things like, "Sure thing, Spot." and "Got it."

"C'mere." He said, leading me over to the middle of the room. "This is Snapper, and that's Rocky. Over there is Ropes, Peanut, and Tanker. Da far end of the room over there is Dodgey and Antz. To the left of 'em is Bullets and Shaker."

"I'm not so good with names." I said when he finished. "Yeah, well you best get good. Because you're gonna be seein' a lot of these guys for the next few days."

"How about you don't tell me what to do?" I said calmly. I received shocked looks from the others for talking to Spot Conlon the way I just did. However, Spot ignored me and kept talking. "Speaking of names..." he continued. "We'se gonna hafta get rid of yours."

"What's wrong with my name!?" I said, raising my voice. "Well, you're a newsie now, arent'cha?" Spot replied. "Yeah, so?" I asked.

"So..." Spot said, starting to get impatient. "Tanker, Snapper, Antz, Dodgey and _Jude? _Doesn't exactly fit, does it?" Spot smirked again and the other guys started to laugh.

I sighed. Realizing I wasn't gonna win, I just shrugged. "Fine." I replied. "Good. There's ya bunk." He said, pointing to the one against the wall at the end of the room. "I'll tell ya when we think of a nickname for ya."

I walked over to my bed and lied down. I stared at the ceiling. I knew it was going to take a while to fall asleep, but I didn't feel like talking to the other boys.

They were Brooklyn newsies, which meant that they had to be tough guys. The truth was that I pretended to be tough, but I wasn't. I just didn't like people knowing what I was thinking, so I tried to defend myself against everyone.

After a few minutes, Spot separated himself from the group and came over to me. He sat on the side of my bed. I looked over at him. "Yeah?" I asked. "Just thought ya'd like to know that we came up wit a nickname for ya." He replied. I sat up. "Alright, let's hear it."

"Well, some of da guys figured it should be "attitude" but I decided on somethin' else." I rolled my eyes. "Hah. Very funny." I said sarcastically. He continued. "I figured it should be Haze, to match dem eyes of yours." He said.

I never really looked like either of my parents. Except for my eyes. I was born with the same light-colored hazel eyes as my mom. It was usually the first thing anyone noticed about me.

"So whadda ya think?" he asked, standing up. I shrugged. "It's okay, I guess..." I said. I watched him walk towards a door next to my bed that I didn't notice before. I guessed it was his room. He probably got his own place to sleep because he was the leader of the Brooklyn newsies.

"Good." He said, opening the door. "Because we wasn't gonna change it if you didn't like it." He smirked and closed the door behind him.

It took me a while to get to sleep. The guys didn't seem too friendly to newcomers, especially since I was a girl. Before I got to the lodging house, I was hoping that the boy from the dock would be there. I sort of felt guilty about not thanking him.

He dressed like a newsie with suspenders and all, so I thought that he might live at the lodging house. As far as I knew, he didn't. Then again, I couldn't really recall what he looked like. I remembered his brown eyes, but other than that I couldn't picture him. My brain was too foggy from the water after that whole event.

It was my fourth day of selling. To be honest, I was starting to like it. A lot more than I thought I would. I still refused to admit it to Spot Conlon, though. He didn't need anything to make his ego any bigger.

We'd actually become friends. He was being less demanding with me and I was being less stubborn with him. We would still argue a lot, but I think it was more of us joking around than anything else.

Aside from Conlon and Snapper, who I learned was a teenage runaway, I didn't really talk to anyone else that much. The others weren't necessarily treating me badly or anything. They would help me out once in a while if I needed something. But we didn't go out of our ways to talk to each other or nothing.

Snapper and I didn't have much in common, but he was the most freehearted out of all of them when he wasn't around his friends. Still, around everyone else he turned back into the usual Brooklyn Newsie. Tough, mocking, and serious. When Spot was busy meeting with other newsie leaders around New York or at the dock, I would hang out with Snapper. But I would stick with Spot when we would sell.

The two of them were really helpful. Snapper taught me how to change headlines around to make them more interesting. He also helped me find a selling spot for myself incase I had to sell alone. Conlon taught me how to get customers attention, and he even showed me how to throw some punches to defend myself.

After a few days of watching the guys, I finally starting joining in on the poker games. All of them taught me some tricks, and soon enough I was able to beat most of them out.

On my fourth day as a newsie, Spot and I bought our usual papers. This time he walked in a different direction than he usually did. I didn't question him, though. Instead I followed him. He always seemed to know where there would be a huge crowd to sell to.

We walked side by side for a while, just talking. I wasn't paying too much attention to where I was going. I was just following Spot.

When I looked up from the ground, we were on a really familiar block. I stopped short as a certain house caught my eye. It made me feel sick to my stomach.

I looked at the parts of the ceiling that had caved in. Around the door and windows, the walls were black where the smoke had touched it. In certain places giant holes were carved out from the flames, and ashes surrounded the whole house.  
_It's been three months and no one's touched it... _I thought. _Guess it's too destroyed to fix up again... _

Spot's point of View 

"Haze? Haze!" I said. She kept standing there completely still. "Haze, you'se okay?" I asked. She still didn't answer. She just stared at the burnt building across the street from where we were standing. I put my hand on her shoulder and shook her lightly.

She quickly turned her head and looked at me, like I surprised her. Her hands were shaking a bit and her eyes were tearing. "Haze... What's wrong wit ya?" I asked quietly. She was starting to scare me. I hadn't known her for long, but I never saw her break down like this.

She cleared her throat and looked away from me. "Nothing." She said, starting to walk away. "It ain't nothin'..." I said, grabbing her wrist to stop her from going any further.

She ripped her hand out of my grasp. "Leave it alone, Spot." She whispered. I opened my mouth to reply, but shut it again. It would be best if I waited until she calmed down a little.

Haze barely said one word to anyone while we were selling. She barely sold any of her papers, either. I felt real bad for her because she had to eat almost three fourths of her papes. But there was nothing I could do. She wouldn't even open her mouth to mutter a headline.

Around dusk, I finished selling my papes. Haze was a different story, though. She had stopped trying to sell altogether and was sitting on a nearby curb. She had her chin in her hand and was staring at the street like she was waiting for something to start growing out of it.

I stood next to her for a few seconds, but she kept concentrating on the ground while in deep thought. "Haze..." I said softly. "C'mon. Lemme help ya sell some of your papes." I offered my hand out to help her up.

Haze shook her head and stood up by herself. "Let's just go." She replied. I sighed. "Ya sure? With da two of us sellin' we can have dese gone in a little more than an hour." I offered. Haze didn't answer, though. She was already heading for the lodging house.

Lately, Haze was playing poker with us after we all finished selling. This time she went straight over to her bed as soon as we got in the lodging house. I joined in on a few rounds of poker and shrugged at the guys whenever they asked me what was up with Haze.

Finally, I decided I had given her enough time. Excusing myself from the game, I went over to her bunk and sat down on the one across from her. Her back was turned to me, but it was obvious she knew I was there.

I said her name twice before she finally turned around to face me. "What." She muttered. "Feel like tellin' me what's up?" I asked, looking her directly in the eye. She shook her head and turned back on her side.

"I'm tryin' to help ya, ya know." I added. She sighed. "I know you are. But you can't. So can we forget this?" _she's almost as stubborn as me... _"Look, Haze. I ain't stupid, a'right? I can read between da lines. I don't know exactly what's goin' on, but I can tells Brooklyn's got some bad memories for ya." I said, raising my voice a little.

She still refused to answer me. I sighed and continued, but softened my voice a little this time. "Maybe we should get'cha outta heah. At least for a bit. I think you'se needs some time to fahget."

"And where am I supposed to go?" she asked. "Without this lodging house I'd be on the streets again." I smiled. "They'res udda newsies outside of Brooklyn, ya know. Ya gotta remembah, Haze. I'm Spot Conlon. I'se got connections."

Thanks a whole lot for reading, guys. If you could please review, I'd be in your debt forever. Not really. But review if you can. thanks :)


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the newsies except for Haze. They all belong to Disney.

Haze's Point of View 

"Dese guys are some of my best friends. They'll take good care of ya." Spot said, giving me a comforting grin. I tried to smile back at him. I walked next to him and looked over the ledge of the bridge.  
Dark blue water surrounded us from almost every angle. It was a really hot summer day, but the breeze from the height and water kept us cool as we walked across the Brooklyn Bridge. I was feeling a lot better than I did the day before. Seeing that house again still haunted my memory, but I was going to try to forget everything.  
Spot told me he was going to leave me at a different lodging house in another part of New York City. According to him, it "wasn't healthy for me to stay in Brooklyn." He didn't know the whole story, but he was right about one thing. I had to get out of there. At least for the time being.  
That morning I woke up at the crack of dawn with everyone else, prepared to sell papes. Spot told me I should stay in, though. He said I should get some extra sleep and he would be back to get me in a few hours.  
Spot sold his papers until about 11:00. When he was done, he came back to the lodging house and we left together. I didn't bother asking where we were going. I didn't really care, so long as I left Brooklyn.  
I was surprised. For someone who spent practically all his time in Brooklyn, Spot Conlon knew his way around New York City pretty well. I, on the other hand, had no idea where we were going.  
The sun had just set by the time we got there. I followed him down one of the blocks where the stores and apartments were connected. Without warning, he turned and walked up the steps of a two story building. A sign .over the door read "Newsboys Lodging House." The building was made out of dark red bricks and looked a lot different than the one in Brooklyn.  
I could hear loud laughing and yelling coming from inside. Spot knocked on the door. When no one answered, he knocked harder. This time, the door opened.  
A boy about 17 years old stood in the doorway. He had dirty blonde hair that he had tried to slick back, but since it was the end of the day it just hung in his eyes. He wore mostly dark clothing, except for a bright red bandana around his neck.  
"Hey, Jackie Boy." Spot said, smirking. "Spot! How's it goin'? Long time no see, huh?" the boy said, spitting in his hand and holding it out. Spot did the same and shook hands with him. "Yeah, Yeah, Jackie Boy. Been a while. Listen, I'se got somethin' to talk to you bout." Spot said, motioning to me. "Yeah, sure Spot. C'mon in." He said, moving aside. He smiled to me as I walked past him.

The lobby of the lodging house was filled with boys. Mostly all of them were in their teens, but their ages ranged from about 12 to 19. All of them were talking or laughing. Some were playing cards, too. I couldn't help but notice it was a lot different than Brooklyn. They seemed more friendly than they did tough, and more laid-back than they did serious.  
"Jackie Boy" walked us over to an empty corner of the room. None of the others really seemed to notice we were there. They were too involved with whatever they were doing at the time.  
"So what's a'matta, Spot?" He asked. "Jack, this here's Haze. She's one of me newsies, but she had to get outta Brooklyn for a while. Don't ask any questions, A'right?." Jack nodded and Spot continued. "We was hopin' she could stay heah for a while. That is, if you'se got room for her."  
"Yeah, I think that'd be okay. Just gotta run it by Kloppman foist. Dunno how he feels about goils in da lodging house." Jack said, pointing over his shoulder. I looked behind him and noticed an old man. He was sitting behind a large wooden desk writing something, and he was wearing a grey bowler hat.  
"Can she sell?" Jack asked. "Course she can sell. Like I said, she's a Brooklyn newsie." Spot replied, smirking. The two of them continued to talk, but soon their words started going in one ear and out the other for me. I watched the other newsies from where I was. One by one, they began to notice mine and Spot's presence.  
I guess they figured I was there looking for a place to stay, because they all shot me friendly looks. Still, they kept talking to one another. "Beat'cha again, boys!" I heard one of them yell. I looked over to a small circle of boys playing cards. They all groaned and threw in their cards. The one who had just yelled had a huge grin on his face. Putting his hands behind his head, he leaned back in his chair.  
I took a closer look at him. He looked familiar... Before I could place where I had seen him, he looked up and caught me staring at him. He watched me for a second, before switching his gaze over to Spot who was still talking with Jack. He rolled his eyes and shot me a dirty look, unlike the rest of the newsies who had noticed me.   
_What's __**his **__problem? _I thought. My attention was brought back when Spot tapped me on the shoulder. "You'se alright, Haze? You look a little noivous." He said. I noticed Jack was no longer next to him. "Yeah, I'm fine..." I said. Spot sighed "I ain't gonna leave ya heah if you don't like it..." he said.  
I shook my head. "No. Spot, it's fine. Honestly." I smiled at him. For the first time since I met him, he didn't smirk. He actually smiled back at me. Jack came over from Kloppman's desk. "It's alright wit him, Spot. She can stay."  
The smile disappeared from Spot's face. "Alright then. You don't think any of ya boys would try anythin' wit her, would dey?" he asked. Jack shook his head. "Nah, but I'll keep an eye out for her." He said.  
"Thanks, Jackie Boy." Spot replied, spitting in his hand and shaking Jack's. When they let go of the handshake, Jack turned to me. "So Haze, right? As ya prob'ly already gathered, me names Jack Kelly. You may hear some of da guys callin' me Cowboy. That's just me nickname." He said, leading me and Spot over to where the rest of the newsies were sitting.

Hey guys..." Jack said, trying to get their attention. When they finally quieted down, he continued. "Looks like we'se got a new newsie joinin' us. This here's Haze. She's from Conlon's side of town. She's gonna be livin' heah and sellin' wit us for a while."   
They all smiled and mumbled their hellos, except for the one who had given me a dirty look. He just crossed his arms and muttered to the newsie sitting next to him, "Look's like Spot's tryin' to get rid of his goil of da month. Must have gotten sick of her already." The entire room heard him, but I think that's what he was aiming for.  
"What?" Spot growled. The whole room had gotten uneasily quiet. "Nuttin." The boy said, shrugging. "Say dat again to my face, Higgins..." Spot said, his hands balling into fists.  
"What'cha gonna do about it, huh, Conlon? You'se gonna soak me here?!" he answered, standing up. I realized that he was small for his age. Even a little smaller than Spot. But he still kept his confidence.  
"Ya never know. You're askin' for it." Spot threatened. The other boy snorted at him. "Ya wouldn't dare. Not so high an' mighty when you're outta Brooklyn, are ya?!" he yelled.  
"Ya filthy bum! I'll..." Spot shouted, lunging towards him. A few of the Manhattan newsies jumped in front of the boy, ready to defend and restrain him. Jack and I jumped in front of Spot to hold him back, too. Both of them were trying to fight their way to each other, ready to soak the other.  
The room became filled with yelling and screaming. "Alright, Alright! Break it up! Move'adda da way!" Kloppman yelled, pushing past all of us. "Racetrack, settle down! Spot, you too! Now drop dis, will ya?!" He yelled. Eventually the room calmed down again. Spot and the boy called "Racetrack" were left out of breath and glaring at one another.  
"Next person to start anythin' gets kicked outta here, you understand?!" Kloppman said. Reluctantly, the boys nodded. Racetrack slid to the ground again and picked up his cards, and Spot pulled me by my arm to the door.  
I kept my eyes down and wouldn't look at him. "Haze..." he said. I know I acted tough, but I wasn't a huge fan of fights. Actually, I hated them. It didn't solve nothing and it made everything uneasy. "Look, I'm sorry, okay? I know you ain't a supporta' of fightin' or nuttin', but that guy's got somethin' shoved up his ass. Got somethin' against me, ya know?"  
"Yeah, alright..." I said, meeting his eyes. He sighed. "I'm gonna get goin' now." Spot said. "If I wanna get back to Brooklyn before midnight." He added, smiling.  
"We'se gonna miss ya, Haze. If ya decide ya don't like it heah, I'll come'n get'cha in a heartbeat, alright?" he said. I nodded. "Okay. How long's it gonna be until I see ya again?" I asked.  
Spot shrugged. "Not long. I come around here a lot, ya know?" He replied. Then he pulled me into hug me. That seriously wasn't what I expected at all. I figured I would be lucky to get a wave out of him.  
He's Spot Conlon. Last time I checked, He didn't show emotion. Unless it proves that he's dangerous, of course. He pulled away from me and turned to leave. "Hey Spot..." I said. He turned around. "Uh huh?"  
"Thanks. For lettin' me stay wit ya in Brooklyn... and for all your help and everythin'." I said. Spot nodded and moved towards the door again. "It was nuttin'."

Thanks to everyone who's been reading. Please review if you can, and I'll have another chapter out soon.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the newsies except for Haze. However, if I DID own the Newsies I'd probably make a second movie because it's just that cool.

Thanks to everyone who's been reading, and to "Jess" who reviewed. Much appreciated, guys :)

START.

Jack introduced me to all the guys. The first ones I started talking to were Kid Blink, Snoddy, and Skittery. Kid Blink seemed to be the friendliest at first, and Snoddy and Skittery were more towards the quiet side. However, after about a half an hour the four of us were engaged in a good conversation."Hey, you guys... we're startin' a new game of poker. C'mon." Mush called from across the room. Snoddy turned to me. "You know how to play, Haze?" He asked. I shrugged. "Yeah, but you guys go ahead. I'm not gonna play..." I said. I wasn't too eager to have to talk to Racetrack. For some unknown reason he didn't seem so thrilled about the fact that I was there.

"Aw, come on. It'll help ya get to know the rest of us." Blink said. Shrugging, I got up. "A'right." I said. We joined Jack, Boots, Mush, Itey Specs, Bumlets, Snitch, Pie Eater, Jake, and Racetrack. Crutchy, Snipeshooter, Swifty, and Dutchy sat near us but just watched. Racetrack dealt out the cards, and when he was finished we all picked ours up.  
----  
Pie Eater threw down his cards. "Dammit, I'm out." He said, backing out of the triangle. Now it was a more like a line. Almost two hours had passed and everyone had dropped out, leaving just me and Racetrack facing one another.

When he looked up from his cards and saw that I was the only one still in the game, he sighed. Choosing not to make a comment about it, he dealt a new hand.

The room seemed tense as the other newsies watched over our shoulders quietly. I examined my cards and tossed the ones I wanted to get rid of.

I picked up the new ones I received. A half smile spread across Racetrack's face. He fanned out his cards and laid them on the floor so I could see them.

He had a good hand. But it wasn't better than mine. "I won." I said, putting my cards down in front of me. A look of astonishment spread across Racetrack's face when he saw them. I guess he wasn't used to being beaten. The practice with Spot and the Brooklyn newsies had helped, but I really won because of pure luck.

"You cheated!" he said after a few seconds. "I did not!" I replied, defending myself. "Dat hand's near impossible to get!" Racetrack yelled. "Yeah, well you're just not used to bein' beat at your own game. By a girl, nonetheless." I shouted back.

Kloppman came out of his office looking a bit ticked off. "What now, what now? What's with the yellin', huh?" he asked. The other newsies tried to reassure him that it wasn't anything to worry about. Kloppman shook his head and sighed.

"A'right, up to bed wit' ya. It's near 1 in the mornin'. Gotta get up early tomorrow. Sellin' the papes. C'mon, let's go. Move it. And Race, put that cigar out right now if ya know what's good for ya. If ya gotta smoke, then smoke outside before ya set da whole place on fire, got it?." He said.

I looked over at Racetrack. He had a freshly lit cigar up to his mouth. He got an annoyed look on his face. Racetrack sighed and put it out, following the rest of the newsies up the stairs.

Between the building, the city, and the other newsies, the bunk room was the only thing that somewhat resembled Brooklyn. Wooden bunk beds were in arranged rows. One row against one wall, and another against the opposite wall.

'Haze..." Jack said, causing me to look up at him. He took off his bandana and put it around his bedpost before walking over to me. "You'se gonna sleep heah." He said. "Bottom bunk below Skittery."

"Okay, thanks Jack." I replied. "There's a table next to the bunk wit a few drawers where you can keep ya stuff." He added.

I sat down on my new bed and closed my eyes. Even though Kloppman had told us to go to sleep, everyone was still talking loudly. Except for Racetrack. He was alone and sitting on his bed, reading an article from an old newspaper. Even though he didn't have much of a reason because no one was bothering him, he still had a little bit of a scowl on his face.

"Heya Haze." I looked up and Skittery was half hanging off his bunk above me, upside-down. I laughed. "Hey Skittery."  
"Ya okay? Ya seem kind of far off." He said. "Yeah, I'm okay... I just... Can I ask ya somethin'?" I asked. "Sure." Skittery replied, jumping down from his bunk and sitting on the edge of mine. "What's on yer mind."

"Uh, well... It's about Racetrack. What's up wit him?" I said, lowering my voice so none of the other newsies would be able to hear. Skittery shrugged. "Don't take him personally, Haze. He just... He ain't a fan of Brooklyn, dat's all." He said.

"Why not?" I asked. Skittery thought for a second. "See, I guess because... Race doesn't like to be told what to do. He's more of a leada' than a followa'. And so's Spot Conlon. So if ya got two people who like bein' in charge, they don't get along so good. Ya know?"

"Yeah... I guess." I replied. "So if he's got somethin' against Conlon, what's that got to do wit hatin' me?" I asked. Skittery shook his head. "He don't hate'cha, Haze. It's just that Conlon's newsies seem to turn out a lot like Spot himself. And Spot and Race haven't always gotten along so good. Race is a good guy, though. Once ya get to know him."

"Yeah... If he ever gives me the chance." I said. Skittery laughed and climbed back on his bunk. "He will. Night Haze." He said. Eventually, everyone stopped talking and I fell asleep.

----

"A'right. Come on, up. Up up up! Let's go, sell the papes." I groaned and rolled over, trying to block out the sound with my pillow. "Snitch, Crutchy, gett'up. Carryin' da banner, Let's go. Let's get a move on, Mush. You too, Itey. Skittery, outta bed." Kloppman yelled.

Sighing, I opened one of my eyes and looked around the room. The guys refused to budge. Silently, I laughed to myself. I think they gave Kloppman a harder time than they had to. Just for their own amusement.

Finally out of bed, everyone got dressed and washed up. We all left about the same time, running down the stairs and heading for the circulation office. On the way there, we were joined by two boys. Cowboy introduced them to me as David and Les, brothers who sold with the newsies.

I waited on line and bought my usual 40 papers. I didn't know if I was going to sell all of them, though. Usually, I would sell with Spot. Today I figured I would be selling alone. I had also just been learning the good selling spots of Brooklyn before I had to leave. I knew nothing about Manhattan.

The rules of selling were the same for Manhattan, however. Be loud, be persuasive, and improving a headline a little never hurt nobody. I was leaving the gates and turning down the street when two little kids ran past me. They were about 7 or 8 and were playing tag. One ran into me, startling me. I dropped my papers and the little boy fell backwards on the sidewalk.

"Oh, I'm sorry..." I said, holding out my hand to help him up. Ignoring me, he shook his head from side to side quickly and the smile reappeared on his face. He got up and began chasing his friend again.

I shook my head and sighed, bending down to pick up my papes. "Ah crap..." I muttered, as they began blowing away in the wind.  
"They're easier to sell if ya can keep a'hold of 'em." I heard someone say. I looked up from the ground and saw one of the newsies helping me pick up my papes. He smiled at me and handed me the pile he had collected.

"Thanks." I said, laughing at his joke. "Itey, right?" I asked him. He nodded. "Yep, and you're Haze." He said, standing up. I did the same. "Dis your first time sellin'?" He asked me.

"Nah, I've sold with Spot a few times back in Brooklyn." I replied, starting to walk again. He walked next to me, clutching his papes under his arm. "Ya lookin' for a sellin' partner?" he asked. "I'se can show ya around in Manhattan." He said, giving me a friendly look. "Sure, why not. Sounds good." I replied.

----

"Thank ya, ma'am. Much appreciated." I said, handing her my last paper. I put the penny in my pocket as Itey came walking towards me. "Woah, you ain't bad at sellin'. I was hopin' to be able to show ya Central Park, too, but you'se already run outta papes." Itey said, laughing. I laughed, too. "What time is it?" I asked. "Near four. Why?"

I shrugged. "We don't have to be back at the lodgin' house for a couple hours, right?" Itey nodded. "So why don't we go anyway and you can show me around. That way, we can just start off sellin' there tomorrow." I suggested.

Itey showed me around the park, pointing out places that were usually busy earlier in the day. However, the park was pretty empty then. Most kids had gone home for the day and most adults were still at work.

We wandered around for a bit looking at different sections of Central Park. It really was beautiful there with the trees and the lakes. Suddenly, we heard yelling coming from further down the path we were on. We exchanged confused looks and hurried to see what was going on

When we got close enough to them, I realized it was Skittery, Mush, Dutchy and Racetrack. They couldn't see us yet because we were still too far away to be noticed. They were all laughing and yelling. Dutchy and Skittery were sitting on the grass nearby, while Mush had Racetrack in a headlock.

"Get off me, will ya?!" Racetrack yelled, laughing and squirming out of Mush's grasp. They started to horse around, lightly punching each other and trying to trip one another. Racetrack tripped Mush and pinned him down as he looked towards a nearby lake. A smile crept across his face.

"Ya wouldn't!!" Mush said, realizing what Racetrack was thinking. Dutchy and Skittery looked at one another. "He would." They said in unison before starting to laugh uncontrollably.

"C'mon." Itey nudged me and started walking towards them. I followed behind him, watching Racetrack trying to drag Mush by his legs to the edge of the lake. Mush squirmed and tried to wriggle out of his grasp.

There was no hint of the scowl Racetrack had on his face the night before. He was grinning widely and his eyes almost sparkled. _He's sort of cute when he smiles... _I thought.

"Heya Itey!" Dutchy said, breaking my train of thought. "Oh, and it's Haze, too!" he added, noticing me behind him. "Hey Haze." Skittery said, smiling. Racetrack saw me and dropped Mush's legs.

"'Bout time." Mush said, standing up and brushing himself off. "I was startin' to think you was really gonna throw me in dere." He said. The rest of them laughed, but Racetrack's smile disappeared. No one seemed to notice except me.

"Haze, how was your foist day sellin' in Manhattan? Pretty good, I'm guessin', if you'se done this early." Skittery asked. I shrugged. "Yeah, it went pretty well. Me and Itey sold togetta." I replied, motioning to Itey.

"Well, if she sells as good as she plays poker, den I'm not surprised..." Mush said, turning to Racetrack. The guys laughed again, but Racetrack got an annoyed look on his face. "Putta lid on it, Mush." He growled.

"Race, calm down. It was just a joke." Dutchy said, raising his eyebrow. "Yeah, yeah... whatever." Racetrack mumbled, starting to walk away. "Where ya goin', Race?" Skittery called. "To the races." He muttered over his shoulder.

Mush turned to me. "Dunno what's up wit him..." he said. "He usually don't act dat way." "Yeah, he ain't been in a good mood lately." Itey chimed in. "Hey, why don't we go back to da lodgin' house?" Dutchy said. "It's gettin' dark."

Hi there. Thanks for reading, and please review if you get the chance. I'll have another chapter out as soon as I can.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Newsies besides Haze. All the credit goes to some guy who works for Disney.

START

Around 9 o'clock, Racetrack came back from the races. Without talking to anyone, he trudged past me and sat down next to Skittery and Blink. Snoddy, who I had been talking to, shot me a confused look. I shrugged as if saying I didn't know what was up with Racetrack. Actually, that was only somewhat true. I knew he was still angry about that afternoon at Central Park, but god knows why. This guy really seemed to have something against me, and I didn't know if the only reason was because I was from Brooklyn... I really wanted to find out.

Snoddy and I continued to talk until I heard a faint noise. I stopped mid-sentence. "Did ya hear that?" I asked. He paused and shook his head. "Nah, hear what?" He asked. "Nevermind." I replied, but then I heard it again. Louder this time.

It was someone knocking at the door. Jack must have heard it too, because he got up and walked over to the entrance.

Cowboy opened the door. "Heya, Jackie Boy." I heard. I knew who it was before I saw him. Cowboy continued to talk to him for a few seconds. Then he motioned for Spot to come in, and Jack turned to me. "Haze, dere's someone heah to see ya." He called.

I excused myself from the conversation with Snoddy and hopped off the couch. Jack went to join the rest of the newsies. "Conlon! Whadda ya doin' here?!" I asked, grinning and walking over to him.

"Came to see how ya foist day as a Manhattan newsie was." He replied. "All the way from Brooklyn?" I asked, surprised. Spot shrugged. "Yeah, I had somethin' I had to do near heah, anyway. Plus I just sold me papes on the way from Brooklyn." He said.

When I reached him, a cold gust of wind hit me from the open door. "Woah, bit cold for a summer night, huh?" I said, closing it and shivering. "Yeah, it's pretty bitta' out." He replied. "So how'd ya do?"

"Pretty good." I said. "Got 40 papes like I normally do." "Sell dem all?" he asked. I nodded. "Good. D'ya like it heah?"

"Yeah, da guys are real great." I said. _'cept for Racetrack... _I thought. _He won't even talk to me... _"Glad to heah it, Haze." Spot said. "Listen, I'se got to be leavin' now. Just stopped by to ask ya dat. But I'll sees ya soon, alright?"

"Sure." I said. Spot pulled me in for a hug and held onto me for a few seconds. Over Spot's shoulder I saw Racetrack glaring at me.

Racetrack's Point of View 

"Man, I can't stand him..." I mumbled, more to myself than anyone else. I hadn't expected anyone to hear me, but Skittery did. "Race, what's ya problem?" he asked, wondering why I was scowling at Haze and Spot. "Nuttin, Nuttin..." I said, trying to get him to drop it.

He eyed me suspiciously. "Race... are you... _jealous? _" He asked. "What!" I said, louder than I had planned to. "No! Of course I ain't!" I said, lowering my voice a little. Skittery sighed. "Ya sure?" He asked. "Yeah, I'm sure. Skitt, dat's just stupid." I said, getting up.

"Where ya off to?" he asked. "Bed. I'se tired." I replied, climbing up the stairs. "A'right, Race. See ya." Skittery said.

Haze's Point of View 

Racetrack went upstairs just as Spot was leaving. "What's up wit him _now _?" I asked, sitting back down next to Snoddy. He shrugged. "I dunno, him and Skittery was talkin' 'bout somethin' and he just went upstairs."

"Bet it's about Spot." I said, sighing. "Maybe I should go up and talk to him... try and straighten stuff out, ya know?" I suggested.

"I dunno if dat's such a good idea, Haze. Race ain't da greatest person to be talkin' to when he's mad, and he didn't seem too happy when he went up." Snoddy said. "Alright..." I replied. "I'll wait for him to calm down a little."

Racetrack didn't come back down, and when we all went upstairs he was either sleeping or doing a great job of ignoring us all. I fell asleep thinking that I had missed my chance to talk to him... I was wrong, though.

---------

I heard something hard hit the wooden floor, and I was jolted out of my sleep. "Ow... dammit." Someone whispered. I opened one of my eyes just slightly enough to see what was going on.

The room was dark and everyone was asleep, except for a moving shadow at the other end of the room. My eyes adjusted, and I saw that it was Racetrack. He picked up the large book that must have fallen and woken me up.

After placing it back on the table, he opened the door and walked out. Looking back to make sure he didn't wake anyone up, I shut my eyes tightly. I only opened them again when I was positive I heard him leave.

I tried to clear my mind as I listened to his footsteps disappear down the stairs. What was he doing up? It had to be pretty late... I wondered what time it was.

Thinking quickly, I remembered seeing an old pocket watch lying on Jack's bedside table the night before. Slipping out of bed, I quietly went over and picked up the watch by the chain. I walked over to the windows to use the dim light from outside so I could see.

The watch read 3:45. _What's Racetrack doin' walkin' around at 3:45 in the morning? _I thought. _I guess this would be a good time to talk to him... at least no one would bother us... _I debated on whether I should go or not.

I put the pocket watch back on Jack's table and followed after Racetrack. By the time I got outside, he was already two blocks down. He was walking slowly with his hands in his pockets, so it was obvious he wasn't headed anywhere in particular.

I shivered as I jogged to catch up to him. The night had gotten even cooler since Spot left, and I wasn't wearing anything but pants and a thin shirt.  
"Hey!" I said, trying to get his attention. Still, I didn't want to wake up anyone in the nearby apartments so I kept my voice down. When he didn't turn around, I said it a little louder. "Hey!" This time, he turned to look at me.

His eyes widened when he saw me. "Did... Did you follow me? What're you doin' heah?" He asked. I shrugged. "You woke me up when you was leavin'..." I said. "So you followed me?" He asked again.

"I guess, yeah..." I replied. "I want to talk to ya." His confused look turned into a scowl again. "I ain't got nuttin' to say to ya." He replied, turning and walking again.

I sighed and continued moving to catch up with him. "See, that's just it. I wanna know why. Why you'se got so much against me." I said. He seemed taken back by my straightforwardness, but he kept walking.

"And wadda' you care if I don't like ya." He asked. It made me wonder... why _did _I care what he thought? Or if he liked me or not? _There's something about him that made me want him to... I dunno... _

Pushing the thought out of my mind, I shrugged. "Honestly, I don't care if ya don't like me. So long as you'se got a reason. And from what I'm gettin' outta ya, ya don't have a reason." I replied.

"I've got me reasons." He said, walking faster. "You're so damn stubborn! Would'ya just stop and talk to me!?" I said, raising my voice.

He sighed and stopped short unexpectedly. I didn't think he would actually listen to me, but he turned to face me. "I just don't like Brooklyn much, a'right?" I don't get along wit people from dere. Especially Spot Conlon, and since you're his goil..."

"I ain't his girl!" I interrupted him. "And as for you not liking Brooklyn, fine. I can't do anythin' 'bout that. But I'm not in Brooklyn, am I? I'm a Manhattan newsie now, exactly like you."

"You'se still from dere." He said, holding his gaze with mine. "Yeah, but take a look at me. Do I look like one of them? They may be me friends, but I ain't anything like 'em." I said.

"Yeah? Says who?" he asked. "Says everyone but you! You won't even talk to me!" I yelled. His facial expression softened and he just looked at me for a few seconds, as if I had surprised him. I waited for him to say something, but he stayed silent. I even surprised myself... usually I was a pretty calm person. _Why is this guy able to get me so worked up over this...? _

I took a deep breath. "Look... even if ya think I'm one of dem, ya never gonna know for sure unless ya give it a chance." I offered, talking calmly this time.

He sighed. "Yeah, fine..." he agreed. "Look, Let's... Let's just get back to the lodgin' house. Da both of us are in huge trouble if Kloppman finds out dat we snuck out." Racetrack said.

Thanks for reading, and thanks to the people who reviewed. I'll have another one out by tonight.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: Besides Haze, I don't own any of the Newsies. They all belong to Disney.

START

The walk back was completely silent. Once in a while we would sneak glances at each other, but that was basically it. When we got back to the lodging house, I followed Racetrack up the front stairs. Before he reached for the door, he turned to me. "We'se gotta keep as quiet as we can. Kloppman ain't the heaviest of sleepers, a'right?" He whispered. I nodded.

He put his hand on the door handle, but it wouldn't move. "Crap... It's locked. That don't make sense, though... I unlocked it before I left." He whispered, more to himself than to me.

"Well, _I _didn't lock it..." I said, shrugging. Racetrack thought for a second. "Maybe Kloppman hoid one us of leave, got up to check the door, and just thought he forgot to lock it..." Racetrack whispered. "So you think Kloppman knows we snuck out?" I asked.

Racetrack shook his head. "Nah, if he did he would probably be standin' outside, ready to give us a lecture. He probably thought he was imaginin' stuff and went back to sleep."

Racetrack went around the side of the building and quietly began climbing the steps of the fire escape. "Whadda ya doin'?" I whispered. "Shh, just follow me." He replied.

When he reached the metal ledge, he went over to the windows. "Ugh, dey're closed!!" he said, trying to slide them open. It was no use though. They we're locked too. "Da guys usually leave 'em open, but I guess it was too cold tonight..." Racetrack said.

"So what now?" I asked. "I'm woikin' on it..." He whispered. He paused for a few seconds, thinking. All of a sudden he starting knocking on one of the window. Lightly at first, but harder when none of the newsies even moved in their sleep. "If one of dem would just _wake up _they could open da window for us..." He whispered.

I sighed. This was useless. If the newsies wouldn't even get up in the morning from Kloppman _yelling _at them, they wouldn't wake up from a knock on the window.

I noticed a light coming from under the bunk room door. As I watched it, it got brighter and brighter. Racetrack, who was still trying to get the guys' attention, didn't notice it.

"Racetrack! RACE!" I whispered. "What?!" he whispered back. Just as the door swung open, I was able to pull Racetrack down so we were both lying below the window. My hand still clutched the front of his shirt so he wouldn't get up. "Whadda doi-" he asked. "SHH!" I interrupted him, placing my other hand over his mouth.

"What's goin' on? Who's up here...?" I heard a faint voice coming from the bunk room say. Racetracks eyes widened as he looked at me. Kloppman's lantern cast its light on the ledge railing behind us, but since we were beneath the glass of the window we were still shaded by darkness.

Kloppman's footsteps came nearer to the window. If he opened one and looked down, he would find us. His footsteps stopped really close to us. It was silent for a second as Racetrack and I stared at each other.

Suddenly, Kloppman turned and walked away. Race and I held our breath until all the light from Kloppman's lantern was on the other side of the door.   
Waiting a few extra seconds to make sure it was safe, we finally got up. I brushed my clothes off. "Uh... Thanks..." Racetrack said, still sounding a little confused.

Before I could answer, he said something else. "Yeah, well... uh, now that Kloppman's up 'nd all, we ain't wakin' da newsies up without him hearin' us." He said.

He walked past me to the opposite end of the fire escape. A vertical ladder was built into the corner of the fire escape against the building. He began climbing it. "Where do ya think you're goin'?" I whispered.

"You aks too many questions, ya know dat?" He said, before disappearing over the top of the ladder. Sighing, I followed him up the ladder. When I got to the flat roof, Racetrack was sitting with his back against the wide brick chimney towards the middle of the roof.

I walked over to Race and placed myself a few feet from him. Instead of sitting like he was, I lied down on my back and put my hands behind my head. It was too early for the sun to rise, so most of the stars were still visible.

"Guess we can try t'get in again before its time for Kloppman to wake everyone up." Racetrack said, breaking the silence. "Guess so." I replied. A gust of wind blew by and made me shiver. I turned over onto my side and held my legs close to me for body warmth.

My eyelids started to feel heavy. _Guess I didn't realize how tired I am... _I thought. I closed them and fell asleep.

-----

_I started coughing uncontrollably and was driven out of sleep because of it. Sitting upright in my bed, the air was thick and difficult to breathe in. I blinked, trying to force my eyes to adjust, but they refused. The room remained a dark grey color. _

_  
My first thought was the door, but that's where the smoke was coming from. I jumped out of bed and ran for the window. Looking down from my second story window, the distance from the ground seemed enormous. _

_  
Beginning to feel lightheaded from the smoke, I decided I had no choice but the door. Maybe there was a route leading outside that the flames hadn't destroyed already. _

_  
I swung it open and the bright glow stung my eyes. The entrance to the kitchen and the other bedroom was blocked by the fire. I stood shocked in my doorway for a few moments, trying to get my heart to slow down.  
Finally gaining control of myself, I threw my body onto the floor and began crawling through the hallway. Although it wasn't completely blocked, the fire on both walls was quickly eating its way to the middle. _

_  
The heat on my face was too much, but I kept crawling. I heard a crackling noise above me and something began to snap. A smoldering piece of wood fell from the ceiling and landed on my upper arm. I cried out in pain as it burned my skin. _

_  
I tried hard to ignore my arm. Everything seemed to be moving in stages and I couldn't keep my mind focused. When I reached the front door, I was barely able to drag myself up to my knees so I could grab the doorknob. The door swung open and I crawled as far as I could from the house, which only ended up being a few feet. _

_  
I coughed again, trying to remove the heavy feeling from my lungs. Then I collapsed on the ground, before being able to see if my sister and parents had gotten out. _

_----_

"Haze! C'mon, wake up!" I heard. Someone was shaking me by the shoulders. When my eyes opened I was breathing heavily and I could feel that my face was wet from tears.

I was lying on my back, staring up at a boy about 15 years old who was hovering over me. Although he was a teenager, his brown eyes had a childish gleam to him. "You'se alright there?" He asked in his heavy New York accent. There was something familiar about this situation.

Forgetting all about the nightmare I just had, I remembered the day at the docks.

----  
_When all of the salt water had been emptied from my body, I let my head drop down again. I tried to catch my breath. _

_  
I looked up and saw a silhouette against the yellow light from the sun. It took a second for my eyes to adjust. A boy about 15 was hovering over me. He was sopping wet and trying to catch his breath, also. The first thing I noticed about him was his brown eyes. Even though he was a teenager, his eyes had a childish gleam to them._

_  
"You'se... Alright... there..?" He asked, in between gasps for air. He had a heavy New York accent. But then again, so did everyone else who wasn't high class around here. _

----

"C'mon! Say something! You'se scarin' me!" He said, forcing me out of the flashback. We were still on the roof but it wasn't that dark anymore. He must have heard me screaming in my sleep and woken me up.

"Racetrack..." I whispered, staring at him. "What?" he asked. I didn't say anything for a long time. "What?!" he asked again.

"That was you... At the dock that day. You were the one who saved me..." I replied. It took him a second to understand what I was talking about. He looked at me confused for a while. Then his eyes widened and his mouth dropped open a little.

Before he could answer, something interrupted us. "Dere ya guys are!" Race and I both turned to where the voice had come from. Specs was standing next to the ladder.

"I woke up and saw dat you guys weren't in da bunk room... Den I heard talkin' comin' from da roof... Whadda ya guys doin' up heah?" He asked, looking around.

Racetrack stood up so he wasn't hovering over me anymore. "We snuck out and couldn't get back in. Everythin' was locked." He explained.

Specs raised his eyebrow at us. "O...kay? I ain't even gonna aks, but ya's better get back in. Kloppman's gonna be comin' in to wake us up any minute."

We snuck back in the bunk room through the window. Just as Kloppman was walking up the stairs, we jumped into our bunks and pretended to be asleep.

Thanks for reading, and please review if you can :) I wanna know what you guys think of it so far.


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the newsies in this story except for Haze.

---------

"Jack!" I called, running up to him after buying my papes. He turned around to see who said his name. "Ya seen Itey?" I asked. "We're supposed to sell together..."

"Oh yeah! He wasn't feelin' so good. Went back to da lodgin' house. He's gonna skip sellin' today. Told me to tell ya but it slipped my mind. Sorry 'bout dat." Jack said. "Oh... don't worry 'bout it." I said. _Ah, crap. Now I'm gonna have to sell alone. _I thought.

Racetrack walked by us with his face buried in one of his papers. He was reading over the headlines and mumbling them to himself. "Hmm..." Jack said, thinking about something. He grabbed Racetrack by the back of his collar and pulled him backwards.

"Hey! What's da big idea!?" Race yelled. "Why don't ya sell wit Race today?" Jack suggested, ignoring what Racetrack said and letting go of his collar. "I usually sell alone, Cowboy." Race replied.

"So what? One day sellin' wit Haze ain't gonna hoit ya." Jack said. "If Race doesn't wanna, I'm fine wit sellin' alone, Jack. It ain't a big deal." I replied.  
"I think it'd be good for da two of ya. Maybe if ya spend the day togedda you'd stop fightin' so much." Cowboy reasoned. Racetrack opened his mouth to say something, but then closed it again.

I had a feeling about what it had to do with. Race was going to tell Jack that we didn't need to spend any more time together because we spend the entire night together yesterday. Just before he was about to say it, he closed his mouth because of how awkward it would have sounded. Jack wouldn't have let him hear the end of it. "Fine." Racetrack said. "C'mon, Haze."

----

Why do ya sell so far away from the lodgin' house?" I asked. Racetrack and I were sitting on a curb somewhere near Brooklyn finishing our lunch. We had both put some of our money together from the day's profit. Then we bought a sandwich and we split it.

He shrugged. "I don't always. I just like sellin' near da races." He said. "Is that why you were around the docks? When I, uh... fell in?" I asked, hoping he didn't catch my mistake. Race nodded. "Yeah, I was goin' to Sheepshead bay."

Neither of us spoke for a while. "So what now? We're both outta papes to sell and it's barely even past 2." Race said. I shrugged. "I dunno, we could go back to Manhattan I guess?" I suggested.

"Nah..." Race said, thinking about something. "I'se got a better idea." He replied, smiling. He got up and started walking down the street. "C'mon." Curious as to what he was talking about, I got up and followed him.

"You gotta be kidding me." I said, staring at the water beneath me. "Nope." Race said, taking off his shoes. "You'se gotta learn _sometime _, don't ya?"  
I shook my head violently. "No, I don't. Race, I'm terrified of the water..." I said, hoping he would change his mind about this. "And you'se gonna stay terrified of da water unless ya learn to swim." he said. Race put his vest and his newsboy hat in a pile next to his shoes.

Racetrack walked past me to the end of the wooden dock and dove in. He stayed under the dark water for a few seconds until he resurfaced. Treading water to stay afloat, he looked up at me. "C'mon!" he said.

"I can't... It's too cold." I replied. Race sighed. "You'll get used to it." he said. "Yeah, but what about when we get out? We don't have a change of clothes to walk back to Manhattan in." I argued.

"So we'll get out before it gets dark and the sun'll dry us off." Race said. "I just ate. I'll get a cramp." I tried. "Would'ya just stop makin' excuses and get in da water!?" he yelled.

Realizing I wasn't gonna win, I sat down and took off my shoes. After placing them near Race's stuff, I walked to the edge of the dock.

I couldn't bring myself to jump in. "Jump!" Race said. "I can't!!" I replied. The fact that I couldn't see how deep the water was was making me nervous. "I'm right heah!" Race said. "I ain't gonna let ya die, Haze. Just close ya eyes and jump."

I shut my eyes tight and pushed off the dock. I screamed as soon as my feet left the wood, but my scream was muffled by the water when I went under. I thrashed around, trying to get up to the surface.

"Calm down!" Race yelled, swimming towards me. My head kept bobbing below the water as I gasped for air. "Race, I can't do this! Help me!" I screamed.

"Stop panickin' so much and you'll float!" He said. "No, I can't float!" I screamed, slightly going under again. "Just kick ya legs and move da water wit ya arms." He said as if it was the easiest thing in the world.

Finally reaching me, he put his hands on my waist to keep me from going under again. Still, I struggled. "Haze, ya makin' _me _go unda, too! Stop freakin' out so much!" Race said, laughing.

"Stop laughin'! This isn't funny! You're gonna let me drown!" I yelled. "Haze, I ain't gonna let ya drown..." he replied calmly.

"Yes ya are!" I said, panicking. "You're gonna drop me and I'm gonna sink to the bottom and-" Race's lips came crashing down on mine. Suddenly, I forgot about the water all around me. I stopped thrashing and my arms and legs went limp in the water.

After a few seconds, I closed my eyes as he kissed me. He pulled away, looking as shocked as I was. Neither of us moved but we refused to make eye-contact.

"I... Dat was, uhh..." Race stuttered, his face turning red. "You're um... swimmin'." He said. I looked down and saw that Race's hands were no longer on my waist. I was treading water and staying above the surface by myself. "Oh, yeah... g-guess I am." I said. Racetrack cleared his throat and it became silent again.

"We should... start to get goin'. Long walk back to Manhattan, and if it gets dark we'se gonna freeze." He said. I nodded. "Yeah, okay..."

Race swam over to the rope ladder and pulled himself up out of the water. He reached the top and climbed over onto the dock. I followed behind him, but the rungs were slippery from being wet. As I grabbed the top rung, my hand slid off and I started to fall backwards into the water.

Race grabbed my hand and pulled me forward again before I could fall. I stepped on the dock with his help and stood up. "Uh, thanks..." I said, moving a piece of hair out of my eyes and tucking it behind my ear. I could tell I was blushing.

"No problem." He said, going to put on his shoes and grab his stuff. "Ya ready?" He said, putting his hat back on his head. I nodded.

Racetrack's Point of View 

Haze and I walked away from the docks in the direction of Manhattan. We were keeping a few feet difference from each other. Neither of us said anything, either.

I stole a glance at her. _God, is she beautiful... _She was walking with her head down, barely paying any attention to anything around her. She looked upset and in deep thought. I knew I had messed everything up.

At first I convinced myself that I had trouble talking to her because she was from Brooklyn. I never got along with Brooklyn, but she wasn't like the rest of them...

I started to realize that wasn't the reason at all. Everything she did made me nervous, and I couldn't understand why. She wasn't like anyone I had ever met before.

The more I was around her the more she managed to make me tongue-tied. Not knowing what to say, I would always let my stubborn side take over. I would say the wrong thing and offend her, starting a fight between the both of us.

After the night on the roof, I started to feel a little more comfortable around her. Just as I thought we had a chance at becoming friends, I blew it.  
She was interested in that Spot Conlon. I just knew it. But still, I couldn't help myself from kissing her. I didn't even realize what I was doing until afterwards. Things were going to be awkward between us from now on. I would be lucky if we could ever have a normal conversation again. I lost my chance.

----

We got back to the lodging house about 15 minutes after dark. Both still a little damp and shivering, we received confused looks from the newsies in the lobby. Haze barely said anything, except a few quick hellos to the guys that greeted her. Then she rushed upstairs to change her clothes. I sat down close to the fireplace to warm up.

I think the guys knew something was going on when I waited until Haze came back down to the lobby before I went up to the bunk room to change. The guys _definitely _knew something was up when I turned down a game of poker.

-----

Thanks for reading! Please review, it would be a huge help :)


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the original newsies from the movie. Only Haze.

Hi again. Alright, so I might be a little slow with the updating within the next few days. My teachers are going a bit crazy with the homework lately since we're really close to finals. However, I'll try to get one out a day.

-----

Haze's Point of View 

I looked dishearteningly at my stack of papers lying next to me. Over the course of the day, the stack had barely even gone down.

"You're startin' to burn." Itey said. "Huh?" I asked, turning my head to face him. "You're shoulder. It's getting' real red." He pointed out. I looked down. Sure enough, my shoulders were beginning to turn a bright shade of pink and it stung when I touched it. "Dammit..." I mumbled. "This sun is drivin' me crazy."

Itey and I were sitting against a building facing the street. It was an unbelievably hot day without a cloud in the sky, and there wasn't even a breeze to cool you down. The sidewalks were almost deserted, except for a few people heading for shade. Everyone was staying inside to escape the heat, leaving only when they had to.

Everyone except the newsies. If we didn't go out, we wouldn't sell our papes. That meant we wouldn't eat that night. Still, being out on a day like today didn't do much good. Not only was the heat too much to bear and we had no customers, the headline's were all slow, too.

Itey and I sat around waiting for people to pass. We were too hot to move. "Just hope dis passes. Imagine us havin' to scream out headlines 'bout a heat wave in New York City while we're tryin' to sell in it." He said. I let out a small laugh.

"A'right. I give up. Nobody's gonna walk by heah, so we might as well find us some shade." I said, standing up. I helped Itey to his feet and we started heading towards the lodging house.

"So what's up wit you and Racetrack?" he asked, walking next to me. I suddenly started to get nervous. "Nuttin'. Why would ya think anythin's wrong?" I asked. Itey shrugged. "Da two of you used to argue like crazy, just goin' back 'nd forth at one anotha'. And now ya just ignore da fact that da other person is alive."

Itey was completely right. Race and I barely exchanged more than two words since what happened at the docks. It had been almost a week, and we were still trying to avoid each other.

I shrugged. "Really? I didn't notice..." I said, trying to sound convincing. Itey sighed. "Da two of you have been actin' real different... Not just towards each otha', towards all of us. Ya know you can tell me if somethin's wrong, right? I ain't gonna tell da woild." He said.

"Yeah... I know. It's just that-" I stopped talking when someone placed their hands over my eyes. I tried to turn around, but they turned with me refusing to let me see who it was.

"Guess who?" I heard someone whisper into my ear. "Spot!" I said, recognizing his voice immediately. He laughed and I whirled around, giving him a quick hug. "What are ya doin' heah?" I asked.

"Jackie boy asked me to take care of somethin' for him..." Spot said. "Oh?" I asked. "What did he need?"

"It uh... It ain't important now. I'll talk to ya about it later." He said. I nodded and Spot turned to Itey. "Heya, Itey. How's it goin'?" He asked, spitting into his hand and holding it out. Itey did the same. "Ain't got nothin' to complain about 'cept dis heat." He replied.

"Yeah, slowin' stuff down a hell of a lot for us newsies." Spot said. The three of us turned when we heard voices coming closer to us. Jack, Mush, Racetrack, and Crutchy were coming down the street, talking.

Race was telling a joke to the guys, and when he finished they all laughed. He turned forward and his smile disappeared when he saw me standing there. I lowered my gaze to the ground and became quiet.

Eventually, Jack's group met up to mine and they began talking. "Hey, Spot." Jack said. "Haze, Itey..." he added, nodding to us. "We was just figurin' they're ain't no point to sellin' anymore today, since nobody's out. We'se headin' over to Tibby's. I told da rest of dem to meet up wit us when they was done. You'se comin' too, right?" he asked.

Itey, Spot, and I agreed, starting to walk towards the restaurant. The sun was finally starting to go down. The air began cooling off and making us feel a lot more comfortable. Everyone except for Race and I, at least. As the group talked and laughed, the two of us remained silent.

Someone pulled on my arm, holding me back from the rest of the guys. "Can I talk wit ya?" Spot said. I nodded. "Yeah, sure..." I replied, confused. Spot led me over to an alleyway and stepped in. "You know, we could just talk in the restaurant like normal people..." I said, laughing.

Spot smiled. "Yeah, I know. But I don't want anyone overhearin' us." He said. He leaned on his back against one of the walls. "Haze... member I was talkin' about how Jackie Boy wanted me to take care of somethin'? Spot asked. "Yeah?"

"Well, he says you been actin' real different lately. Says ya barely talk to any of da guys 'nd ya look noivous all da time. He's worried 'bout ya. So he aksed me to come heah and stay da night in Manhattan. Talk wit ya, since me 'nd you is close friends." He said.

I swallowed the lump in my throat. "I've just been tired lately..." I attempted. Spot raised his eyebrow. "I don't think dat's it, Haze." He replied. Sighing, I looked up at him. "Fine. Somethin' was botherin' me for a while, but... but it ain't anymore. I'm okay now." I said.

Spot stared at me for a while, like he was trying to see if I was lying or not. Finally, he nodded slowly. "I ain't gonna make ya tell me what was wrong, so long as you'se sure ya okay now." He said. "Ya promise whatever it was ain't botherin' you anymore?" He asked. "Yeah. I promise."

I lied. I just couldn't think straight since Race kissed me. At first I was shocked and confused, but when I felt his lips on mine it was one of the most amazing feelings in the world. After that whole thing I couldn't look at him without getting butterflies in my stomach. Never mind talk to him.

When I was in the same room with him it felt like a million things were flowing through my mind at once. It made it unbelievably hard to concentrate on one thing. So I just wouldn't say anything, afraid that my words would come out as jumbled up as my thoughts were.

---------

When we got to Tibby's the guys were already seated at a few tables in a corner of the restaurant. More had showed up, and there were a few empty seats. Spot took a seat at the same table as Jack, Skittery, David, Les, and Race. He motioned for me to come sit down next to him.

The guys greeted us and I saw Jack give Spot a certain look. Spot just nodded, as if saying he took care of it. I tried to be as talkative as I could so Conlon would believe what I told him back in the alleyway.

"Heya guys." Blink said, walking in with Boots. The two of them began walking over to the corner of the restaurant we were in. "Between da bad headlines and da heat I'm way behind for today. Can anyone spot me a few bits?" Blink said. Jack tossed him a dime and Blink caught it, walking past him. "Thanks, Cowboy. I'll pay ya back tomorrow." He said, sitting down in an empty chair at our table.

A few minutes later, Dave stood up from the table. "Hey Race..." he said. Racetrack looked up from the glass of soda he had been absentmindedly stirring with a straw. "huh?" He asked. "Can you watch Les for a few minutes? I'll be right back." Dave said. Race nodded and Dave began weaving in and out of the chairs to get to the door.

"Davey, where ya goin'?" Jack asked. "I'm gonna run back to my house to get some money. I didn't think Les would be coming so I didn't bring that much." He explained. Jack reached into his pocket and took out a quarter. "Here," He said, flicking it to David. "You can pay me back tomorrow at the circulation desk 'nd save yourself da trip home."

"You sure?" Dave asked, sitting back down. Jack nodded. "Man, Cowboy. Where ya gettin' all dis money from if da headlines are so bad!?" Boots joked, laughing. Jack smirked and sat back in his chair. "Oh god... I know dat look. What'd ya do, Jack?" Mush said, a smile spreading across his face.

Cowboy grabbed a piece of paper off the table and held it over his head, pretending it was a newspaper. Imitating the way he would usually sell his papes, he yelled "Extra, Extra! Heat wave anticipated to be da end of New Yawk City!"

All of us burst out laughing. "And people actually believed dat!? We ain't even sure if it's a heat wave yet! It's only been one day!" Specs said. Cowboy shrugged. "Guess dey believed it. I sold all 100 papes, didn't I?"

I stole a glance at Race, He was completely zoned out, staring down at a particular area of the tablecloth. He looked so out of place. While everyone else was smiling and laughing, he seemed to be in deep thought.

"You'se alright, Haze?" Spot said, making me realize I was watching Racetrack. "Yeah." I said, looking away and faking a smile. Spot put his arm around my shoulders. "A'right, good." He said.

Racetrack's Point of View 

I was planning on talking to Haze that night. Saying something that would make it a little less awkward between us. I wasn't sure what I was going to say, but at that point I would have done anything just to have a conversation with her again.

My heart sunk when I walked down the street and saw her standing with Itey and Spot. Itey really didn't worry me. They were just selling partners and good friends. Spot, however, was a different story.

On the way to Tibby's, Spot pulled her to the back of the group. They went off to talk in an alleyway. God knows about what, but I would have bet all my gambling money that it wasn't a good thing for me.

When they got to the restaurant, she sat down next to him. I was surprised she sat at my table at all, since she had been trying to avoid me for almost a week now. I assumed she decided to forget what happened between us, thinking it didn't mean anything. For me, it was the exact opposite. It meant almost everything to me.

When Conlon slipped his arm around her shoulders halfway through dinner, I got the worst feeling in the pit of my stomach. I was ready to soak him, but I stopped myself. Instead I forced myself to just try and block everything out.  
Anyone could imagine how utterly thrilled I was to find out that Spot was going to be staying the night in Manhattan. That was sarcasm. They sat on her bed for a while, talking. I couldn't hear what they were saying, but I decided that was best. I wasn't in the mood to hear anything that would have ticked me off more than I already was.

Since Spot Conlon was basically attached to her at the hip the entire night, I never got a chance to talk to her. Feeling crushed and defeated, I tried to get some sleep.

Haze's Point of View 

After we finished dinner, we headed back to the lodging house. Since everyone was all worn out from the heat, we were ready to fall asleep by 11. Spot sat on my bunk for a while, talking to me. When everyone started to turn in he went to one of the extra beds across the room.

I lied on my back for a while, staring up at the bottom of Skittery's bunk. Despite my exhaustion, I had way too much on my mind to fall asleep. After what seemed like hours, I eventually slipped into a restless sleep.

_coughing uncontrollably, the heavy smoke weighing down my lungs... Barely on the edge of consciousness, hoping my family had gotten out alive. The burning pain on my shoulder from the collapsing ceiling felt so real. Suddenly, I was sitting in the middle of my kitchen. Trapped, flames surrounding me all around. I whipped my head around, looking for a way out of the circle of fire that was inching closer to me by the second. My little sister screamed my name. It echoed through the house, but I couldn't tell where it was coming from. I knew I was dreaming. I tried to force myself to wake up from the nightmare I had so many times before, but I couldn't. Finally, I forced my eyes open. _

The dark lodging house was in front of me. My pillow was wet from tears and my heart beat fast. Trying to clear my mind of the nightmare, I closed my eyes. I couldn't get the images out of my mind, so I just tried to imagine pure blackness.

Eventually, I started to sink back to into sleep. Barely even awake, I felt someone kiss me lightly on the cheek. "Night, Haze..." They whispered. The voice was too low to tell who it was. Before their footsteps even reached their bed, I was asleep again.

-----

Please review if you can. I'd love to hear what you think :)

Thanks for reading.


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the original characters from the movie "Newsies"

Hey there. How's it going? Good? Good. So before we start, thanks so much to the people who reviewed. Your opinions helped a whole lot.

-----

Kloppman woke us up the next morning. At first, I couldn't remember what happened the night before. Then the nightmare came flooding back to me, and soon after I remembered waking up in the middle of the night.

_Did someone actually kiss me? Or was I dreaming that too? _I looked over at Race. He was sitting on his bed, tying his shoes. He had the same vacant look on his face that he'd had for the past few days.

"Heya Haze." Spot said, coming over to my bunk. I yawned and swung my legs over the side of the bed so I could stand up. "Hey Spot." I replied.  
"How'd ya sleep?" he asked. I shrugged. "Fine." I said. "Listen, I uh... I hoid ya last night. You was tossin' nd toirnin' in ya sleep. Ya sounded upset. Did'ya have a nightmare or somethin'?" he asked,

_So it was Spot who kissed me... _For some reason when I knew that, my heart sunk a little. I brushed it away and decided to forget the disappointment in the pit of my stomach.

"Really? I don't remember havin' one..." I lied. Maybe if he thought I forgot then he wouldn't bring up the kiss. It worked, because he told me he would wait for me downstairs while I got ready.

I jumped down the lodging house stairs outside. Spot was leaning against the building, and he looked up when he heard me. "Ya sellin' here today?" I asked him. He shook his head. "Nah, I'm gonna go back to Brooklyn to sell. Told 'em I'd be back before noon. But I'll walk ya to the distribution desk." He said.

We walked slowly next to each other. It certainly wasn't as hot as yesterday, but it was really warm out. There was a cool breeze blowing that made the weather bearable, though.

"So... I was thinkin' last night." Spot paused there, and I looked up at him waiting for him to continue. "It's been almost two weeks you'se been in Manhattan, ain't it?" he said.

I nodded. "Yeah, 'bout that long." I replied. "Some of da guys, 'specially Snapper, they've been wonderin' when you'se comin' back to Brooklyn. I told 'em I would aks ya when you'd feel comf'table comin' back." He said.

Actually, I hadn't thought about it. I did miss the guys back in Brooklyn. The whole reason I left was to forget about what happened to my family, and while I was in Manhattan I realized something. The nightmares still haunted me, no matter how far away I was from Brooklyn. I guess distance can't heal something like that. Only time can.

"I was thinkin' about goin' back soon... maybe a few days, or a week. Around that." I said. Spot nodded. When I looked up, we were at the circulation office. "A'right... so when you'se ready to come back, just let me know and I'll come 'nd get ya." Spot said.

I nodded. "See ya around, Spot." I said. He gave me a quick hug and turned to go back to Brooklyn.

Racetrack was standing at the end of the line when I got there. Reluctantly, I got on the line. We tried to pretend not to see each other, but it was useless. As more newsies lined up, we were forced to stand closer to each other.

"Good thing it ain't dat hot today, huh?" he said nervously. I looked up at him and gave him a small smile. "Yeah." I said, looking down again.

Race took a deep breath. "You okay? Ya look uneasy." He said. "Yeah, I'm just... a little..." My voice faded out. "A little what?" he asked after a second.  
"I dunno... Spot aksed me to go back to Brooklyn and-" I said. "Wait, so you'se leavin'?!" he said, louder than I expected him to. I looked up at him, surprised. "Yeah... I wasn't plannin' on stayin' heah forever..." I said.

He rolled his eyes and shrugged. "'kay." he said simply, turning to face the front of the desk. "What?" I asked, confused with his sudden anger.  
"Nuttin'," he replied with a hint of attitude in his voice. "Race..." I said, reaching out to touch his arm. "It ain't gonna be for a few-" He pulled away from me. "Look, it don't matta to me, okay?"

"Well, obviously somethin's tickin' you off!" I said back in defense. "Yeah, well it ain't dis! I don't care if ya leave or not. Have fun wit Spot Conlon." He said coldly.

I looked at him in disbelief for a second. I felt tears rushing to my eyes, but I tried to choke them back. He refused to look me in the eye as I stared at him. _How could he say that? _I thought,

I turned and pushed through the crowd. The newsies got aggravated and yelled things like, "Hey, watch it!" and "What's the big idea?!" I ignored them and dodged in between everyone until I was out of the line.

I ran past the gate and looked both directions down the street. I saw Spot a few blocks down, almost out of sight. I ran after him.

When he heard my quick footsteps behind him he turned around, and I ran straight into him. "Woah... Haze, what's wrong?" he asked. "I don't wanna be here no more, Spot. I wanna go back to Brooklyn..." I said into his shirt. "Now?" he asked, confused. I nodded and tried hard not to cry.

"What happened?"Spot asked, holding me out at arms length. I shook my head. "It ain't important." I said. "I just wanna get outta heah."

"Haze, I can't take ya back now. You would hafta get ya stuff togetha' and I gotta be back in Brooklyn in a few hours..." he said.

Spot sighed and bit his lip, thinking about something. "How 'bout dis. You take one extra day to say goodbye to ya friends and get ya stuff, and I'll be back foist thing tomorrow." He suggested.

I didn't want to say goodbye to anyone. For all I cared I would have left my stuff behind. It wasn't like I had much back at the lodging house anyway. Realizing I had no choice, I nodded. "A'right." I said, feeling a little calmer that by this time tomorrow I wouldn't have to talk to Racetrack Higgins anymore.

Racetrack's Point of View 

I wanted to soak myself for what I had just said to her. The newsies around us were talking loudly, but I blocked it out and it seemed like dead silence between the two of us.

My words rung back in my ears. _"Yeah, well it ain't dis! I don't care if ya leave or not. Have fun wit Spot Conlon." _She stared at me like she couldn't believe me, and I didn't blame her.

I couldn't bring myself to look up at her. I was scared that the tears I thought I saw in her eyes were really there. She turned away and pushed through the crowd. I let my head fall back hard on the wall behind me. Resisting the urge to scream, I cursed my short temper that had once again made me say something I didn't mean.

I thought about going after her, but I decided not to. I had to calm down first or I would say something else I didn't mean. I hated seeing her hurt, especially if I was the one to cause it.

I thought back to the night before in the lodging house.

It was the third time I had woken up during the night, due to too much on my mind. Lying awake with my eyes open for a few minutes, I thought I heard something from across the room. I strained my ears to be able to tell what it was. It sounded like a soft whimpering sound.

I rolled over to my side, facing where it was coming from. Using the dim light coming in through the window, I saw Haze shaking slightly in her bed. I climbed out of mine and walked silently over to her.

By the time I reached her bunk, her crying had stopped. She was asleep and her cheeks were wet from tears. I watched her for a few minutes, making sure her nightmare had stopped.

_She's so beautiful... _I thought, not being able to take my eyes off her. Ignoring my better judgment, I reached forward and lightly wiped the tears off her face. Before I could stop myself I leaned down and kissed her softly on her cheek. "Night Haze." I whispered, turning back towards my bunk.

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That one was kind of short. Sorry about that. Please review if possible, guys. Thanks for reading.


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the original characters from "Newsies"

-START-

Haze's Point of View 

I tried to sell papes that day but it was hard to keep focused. Even though I tried to forget about that morning my brain subconsciously reminded me that Racetrack didn't care if I stayed or left. I didn't matter to him at all, meanwhile he mattered so much to me. Soon enough I gave up even though I had only sold about half my papers. Around 6:00 I went back to the lodging house and sat down in the lobby.

The newsies learned shortly after I returned to the lodging house that I was in no mood to talk to anyone. After four of them had tried to find out what was wrong, they all gave up realizing I wasn't going to tell them.

I sat in the same spot all night, while the rest of them talked and played cards. I only opened my mouth to tell Jack and Kloppman that I would be leaving for Brooklyn the next morning. The constant pain in my stomach reminded me that I didn't eat all day, but I had no appetite.

I heard people shuffling around in my subconscious but I decided to ignore it. "Haze?... Haze!" Cowboy said, waving his hand in front of my face and breaking me out of my trance. "Huh?" I asked, looking up at him.

"We'se goin' up to the bunk room. Ain't ya comin'?" He asked. "Uh... I'm gonna stay down heah for a little while longa'. I'll be up in a few minutes." I replied.

Kloppman came into lobby after everyone had gone upstairs. He saw me sitting in the dark with my head in my hand. "Ya still up, Haze?" he asked, while checking to make sure the door was locked. "Yeah..." I replied. "I'm goin' up soon."

"A'right, a'right. Just don't stay up too late. Ya leavin' for Brooklyn early tomorrow, ain't ya?" He asked. "Yeah." I said. He nodded and said goodnight to me before returning to his room.

I had never been in the lobby by myself at night before. Without the newsies in it laughing and talking, it seemed eerie and cold. Especially when it was dark.

I got up and moved to the couch that was positioned right in front of the fireplace. It was the only source of light in the whole room. I leaned in so the heat warmed my face. Letting my vision blur out on the glowing flames, I sat still.

A few hours must have passed, but I still didn't feel like sleeping. I figured as long as I was quiet, there was no harm being down in the lobby.

I heard footsteps coming down the stairs, but I figured it was just Jack telling me I should get some sleep. However, they didn't stop until they were right behind me.

--------

I turned and looked up, seeing Racetrack. He shoved his hands into his pockets nervously. "Mind if I sit down?" He asked, motioning with his head to the spot on the couch next to me. I shrugged. "Go ahead." I replied.

I returned my gaze to the fire, and tried to ignore the butterflies in my stomach that appeared every time he was near me. _Forget him... He doesn't feel the same. He basically told you that this morning. _My mind wandered back to the kiss at the docks. _He was just trying to get you to stop freaking out... It worked, didn't it? _

"Ya don't sleep well, do ya?" He asked, breaking me out of my thoughts. "You don't either if I'm not the only one down heah." I replied. "I'm not just talkin' 'bout this. Last night, too. You get a lot of nightmares..." He said.

That's when I realized it. I tried to remember lying in my bed the night before and feeling someone kiss me, and then the footsteps... They went towards the door instead of towards the windows, which was where Spot was sleeping.

"You were the one that kissed me..." I whispered quickly without thinking about it. I immediately wished I didn't say that, because I could feel his eyes on me. "You... you was awake?" he asked. I brought my eyes to him. The lighting wasn't so great, but I'm pretty sure I saw him blush.

I nodded. The silence in the room became extremely uncomfortable and seemed to last forever. "Why didn't ya bring it up?" he asked finally. "Thought it was Spot." I admitted.

"What bothers ya so much while ya sleep?" Race asked, changing the subject. I looked over at him. He was leaning closer to the fire and staring into it. The light shown on parts of his face, and reflected in his eyes. I don't know what made me want to trust him, but I did. I wanted tell him something I hadn't spoken about since it happened...

I took a deep breath. "I used to have a family... It was my mom, my fadda' and my little sister. We lived in a house in Brooklyn, and... one night a fire started in da kitchen while we was all asleep." I swallowed the lump in my throat and continued. "I got out, and they... didn't."

"Haze... I'm so sorry..." he whispered. I shook my head. "Don't be. Ain't your fault." We were quiet again. "Race?" I asked. He turned his head to me. "I gotta tell ya somethin' else. The foist time I met you, when you saved me at the docks... I – I didn't..." I thought about telling him to forget about what I was going to say, but I had to get it off my chest. "I didn't exactly fall in." I said.

His eyes widened "You jumped?" He asked in a hushed voice. "I didn't really tryin to hurt meself or nuttin'... I wasn't thinkin' right. Everythin' seemed so impossible, and I was tired of fendin' for myself, and livin' with the fact that they was gone... and..." I took another deep breath, trying to steady my voice. "Yeah... I jumped."

I felt Racetrack slip his arm around my shoulders and pull me closer to him. Almost instinctively, I rested my head on his shoulder. I felt safer than I had in a long time. "What I said dis mornin' wasn't true. You do matta' to me. A lot, Haze." He said. "I ain't neva' had anythin' against ya. I just couldn't get me thoughts straight around ya, so I'd always end up sayin' da wrong thing..."

I lifted my head up so I could face him. Race picked up my hand and held it. He leaned closer to me, but his eyes never left mine. Our faces were about 6 inches apart when a door creaked behind us.

Automatically we both pulled away. Kloppman came out of his room, looking like he was half asleep. "Race, Haze... go to sleep." He said. "It's almost 4 in da mornin'..." Race dropped my hand. We both nodded and stood up. Somewhat embarassed, we walked towards the stairs.

Kloppman went back into his room, and Race and I climbed the stairs to the bunk room. I started walking to my bunk, but Race grabbed my arm. I turned around to look at him. He opened his mouth like he was going to say something, but closed it again.

Sighing and dropping my arm, he whispered, "Night, Haze." He turned and walked towards his bunk. I crawled into my bed, and within a few minutes I was asleep. I didn't have any nightmares that night, but a small nagging feeling in the pit of my stomach told me that I shouldn't have told Spot I was ready to go back to Brooklyn.

---

Thanks to everyone who's been reading :) I really appreciate it. Please review if you can. I'd love to hear your opinions.


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the original characters from "Newsies."

---START---

When I first woke up to Kloppman yelling in the bunk room, I almost got up to get ready for selling papers. Then I remembered that I was going back to Brooklyn that morning.

Kloppman went down the isle between the beds, individually trying to wake everyone up. "Let's go, Snitch. Come on, Race. Carryin' da banner. Cowboy, get up. Time to sell papes. Pie Eater, Itey, Crutchy. Get a move on, Headlines ain't gonna yell out demselves, ya know. Boots, Skittery. Hurry it up, beautiful day for sellin' papes."

Kloppman stopped in front of mine and Skittery's bunk. "Haze... Spot Conlon's already down in da lobby waitin' for ya. Says take ya time gettin' ready." Then he continued down the row, annoying everyone until they dragged themselves out of bed.

I knew I should have gotten my stuff together the night before, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. If I did, everything would seem so... _final._ I didn't want to leave the lodging house or the newsies in it. Especially Racetrack and especially after what had happened the night before. Still, I already told Spot I wanted to leave as soon as I could. Even if I told him out of anger and frustration, I still told him. And he was already downstairs waiting for me. I couldn't take it back now.

I quickly washed up, avoiding the sullen looks I got from the other newsies preparing for the day. I didn't have much except for a few extra sets of clothes, but it took me almost 20 minutes to get them together. I kept losing my train of thought and having to stop to think about what I had been doing.

When I looked up from the short pile of folded clothes sitting on my bunk, the newsies were crowded around me. Their usual smiles had disappeared from their faces. I hadn't told many of them about my leaving, but apparently they all found out one way or another.

"Thanks for everythin', Jack." I said, hugging him first. "I'm gonna miss ya, Skitt." I said, hugging Skittery next. "And god help da next person who moves into me old bunk, because you sure as hell move 'round a lot in ya sleep." He gave me a small smile.

Next was Itey. "Been great sellin' wit ya, Itey." I said. "You too, Haze." He replied. I hugged all the other newsies, and when I finished I noticed Racetrack wasn't among them. I looked over at his bunk. He was sitting there against the headboard, and although he had a racing form in his hand he was still watching me.

He stood up and the other guys moved out of the way for him. He walked over to me and stopped a few feet away. Neither of us moved, and the room seemed unnaturally quiet.

Race took another step towards me and I threw my arms around his neck. His arms slowly went around my waist and pulled me closer to him. We stayed like that for a while, and I didn't want to let go.

I could feel the rest of the newsies watching us in silence. "Would'ya get outta heah?" Race said suddenly. Immediately, all the newsies started talking and moving around at the same time. I smiled slightly. He pulled away and placed his hand on the side of my cheek.

I had to tilt my head upwards to look him directly in the eye when we stood this close. "Ya better visit, Haze. Foist chance ya get. I'se gonna miss ya..." he said. "I'll come back to see ya guys soon as I'm settled in Brooklyn." I replied. Race nodded but his eyes never left mine.

"Let's go! Get a move on!" Kloppman's voice came from downstairs. "All of you'se is so slow, dere ain't gonna be no papes left when ya get to da desk!" he yelled. The newsies all began to shuffle out of the bunk room and Race's hand dropped from my face. The words were on the tip of my tongue, but with one last look at me Racetrack followed the rest of them out.

The walk to Brooklyn was anything but talkative. I could tell Spot was dying to ask me why I wanted to leave so suddenly. The troubled look on my face told him I didn't want to talk about it, though. Thankfully, he got the hint and left it alone.

We got back sometime around noon and we headed straight for the docks. I could hear the Brooklyn newsies before I could see them. We reached the water and Spot took his place on the crates overlooking the river. There were only about 4 or 5 of the Brooklyn boys in the water. I figured all of them were either quick sellers or skipped selling for the day, since it was so early.

"Ya loin how to swim yet, Haze?" Spot asked, breaking the silence we had held for a while now. "Yeah, one of the Manhattan newsies taught me." I replied, looking out over the river and remembering that day with Racetrack.  
"Ya gonna go in?" he asked, motioning to the water with the gold end of his cane. I shook my head. "Nah, I'se too tired." I said. "Den come sit wit me." Spot suggested, moving over a little.

I went over and climbed onto the crate. His smokey blue eyes continued to look out over the water for a while. "It's good t'have ya back, Haze." Spot said, picking up my hand and holding it in his. He turned his head to me and smirked, waiting for a reply.

I appreciated everything Spot had done for me since I first became a newsie. After all, he was the one who took me into the Brooklyn lodging house when I didn't have a place to stay. He was also the one who got me a place to stay in Manhattan, without which I never would have met all of the newsies.

It was on the tip of my tongue to respond with "_it's good to be back, _" but I decided against it. I figured I had done enough lying to Spot in the past few days.

---------

Summer eventually ended and faded into autumn. The weather got colder and colder until winter arrived, bringing snow and icy wind. I definitely preferred selling in the summer for obvious reasons, but I had no choice. I had to keep my profits up or I wouldn't eat.

I didn't go back to Manhattan once since I left. It made me incredibly guilty knowing that I had promised to visit, but I just couldn't bring myself to go... I knew for a fact that if I saw Race and the rest of them again it would be even harder leaving a second time. It would be near impossible. I hadn't spoken to them in over 3 months, and I hated myself for it. It made my heart ache every time I thought of Racetrack. I missed him more than words could say.

I noticed such a huge difference between the Brooklyn newsies and the Manhattan newsies. The Manhattan boys were always smiling and joking around. They were always there for each other, while the Brooklyn newsies were the exact opposite. Sure, they had each other's backs in fights, but most of the time they seemed cold and distant towards one other.

I started talking to Snapper again, my old selling partner. The friendship we used to have seemed like nothing compared with the friendship I had with many of the Manhattan newsies.

My old bunk was still free when I got back to Brooklyn. Even though I was sleeping in the same bed and I was around the same newsies, everything seemed so different than it did before I went to Manhattan.

----

I changed my clothes that were wet from the snow and I crawled into my bed. I wasn't tired. It was fairly early, but the bunk room was freezing. I nestled in further beneath the blankets and tried to stop shivering.

"Haze..." one of the newsies called from across the room. "Yeah?" I said, sitting up. It was Bullets who called me. "When did'ya get back from sellin'?" he asked. "Few minutes ago." I responded.

"Oh..." he nodded, getting up and walking over to me. "Jist wanted to tell ya, someone stopped by da lodgin' house lookin' for ya today." He said. "Really? Who was it?" I asked quickly.

"Didn't leave his name. Small lil' punk, though. Dark cap, brown n' black vest... Bit of a smart-ass if ya aks me. He left soon as I told him ya weren't heah." Bullets said, going back over to his original seat.

I got butterflies in my stomach. _He couldn't be talking about Race... could he? _I thought. _No way... Racetrack wouldn't dare come by here. He hates Brooklyn Newsies. It'd be just fine with him if he never had to speak another word to them again... _I pushed that thought out of my head. Deciding I shouldn't get my hopes up, I convinced myself it was someone else.

----

Almost everything had gone numb from the cold. Snowflakes started to fall from the dark night sky again, adding to the snow on the ground. A cloud formed in front of my mouth from the heat of my breath against the freezing air. It had never taken me so long to sell all of my papes. I was guessing because the headlines had never been so uninteresting.

I couldn't even think of anything to say that would improve them. The only way I had been able to sell all of my papers was completely making up new headlines. Of course, giving customers helpless and pathetic looks didn't hurt either. I thought about giving up during the day, but it wasn't as simple as it was in the summer. I had to sell as many papes when I could incase I got sick or the weather was too harsh to go outside. Thinking back on it, I would rather sell in a heat wave.

It was nearly nine at night when I finished. I began walking towards the lodging house, eager to get inside. As I walked down the sidewalk, it was almost deserted. However, I sensed movement and something caught my eye across the street.

I saw a figure leaning against a building. It was hard to tell who it was through the snowfall, but something about his posture was familiar... I squinted to get a better look. He took something out of his pocket and lit the end of it. A cigar. Bringing it up to his mouth, I saw smoke rise.

"Racetrack..." I muttered. _He probably just left the races... _I thought. Racetrack was always in Brooklyn because of the races but I never ran into him because he always left so late at night. By that time, I was usually in the lodging house. I stood staring at him. He didn't see me, but I don't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing. After almost 4 months, he still made me get butterflies in my stomach when I looked at him.

He started to walk away, heading towards Manhattan. I started to call his name, but it got caught in my throat. I wanted to run after him, but for some reason I held myself back...

_What's he gonna say if I walk up to him on the street... After promising I'd see him again soon, I haven't spoken to him in so long. He won't get why I never did go back, he'll just think I forgot about him... _

I stood in the same spot until I couldn't see him at all anymore. Even minutes after he was gone, I didn't move. That's when I regretted not saying anything to him. All the feelings I had for him came flooding back to me, more memorable than ever. I had to see him again as soon as I could.

I didn't dare chase after him. Alone on the streets in Brooklyn isn't the best place to be at night. I decided I would go tomorrow. I couldn't ask Spot to take me because he had to meet with another newsie leader. The others would insist on selling, and Spot would never let me go alone...

_What Spot doesn't know can't hurt him... or rather, what he finds out after I'm gone can't stop me..._

_ ------_

Like it? Hate it? Have no idea what the hell is going on? Please send me your opinions, guys :D

And as always, thanks for reading. _  
_


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the newsies besides Haze.

Hi there. I didn't get a chance to update this one yesterday. But this chapter's kinda long to make up for it. Enjoy, guys.

--START--

Since the Brooklyn newsies didn't have anyone like Kloppman to wake them up, Spot usually got up around 8 and woke up the others. That meant I could sneak out at the break of dawn and be long gone before Spot woke up.

I wrote a note telling Spot where I was, that I had something I had to take care of, and that I'd be fine. Placing it on the table next to his bed, I quietly snuck out of the lodging house.

It wasn't as cold as the night before, but the snow definitely had added up over night. There was almost a foot on the ground. I wrapped my clothes tighter around me as I trudged through the snow.

The snow made it a lot harder to walk at a quick pace, so it took me twice as long to get there. At first I thought going there was a mistake. I didn't even know what I would say to Race. First I wandered around for a while. Then I bought a few papers and sold them on the outskirts of Manhattan, until I couldn't put things off any longer.

I thought about checking the lodging house, but it was too early for the newsies to head back there. I doubted they were still selling, so they had to be either at Tibby's or Central Park.

Since I was closer to Central Park, I began heading over there. The park was large. I would be lucky if I found any of the newsies to ask them where Racetrack was before sundown.

Just as I was about to give up, I heard a familiar voice. "Go 'head! Throw annudda." He dared, yelling at someone else. "'nd this time try to hit me instead of da tree!" I could have sworn it was Skittery. It didn't sound that far away, but I couldn't see anyone. Jogging to where I thought it came from, I found I was right.

Kid Blink, Mush, Skittery and Itey were laughing and throwing snowballs at one another. I planned on asking one of them if they had seen Racetrack.  
"C'mon, Race. Ya just gonna sit dere all day?" Mush said. That was when I noticed Racetrack was there. He was off to the side, sitting on a bench.

Shrugging, he got up and scooped up some snow. Mush threw a snowball at him and completely missed. Race smiled, but his eyes didn't sparkle like I remembered them to...

"Haze!" Itey yelled, noticing me. They all turned around and saw me. "Haze! You're back!" Skittery yelled, running up to me. I smiled. "Hey guys." I said, greeting them.

Racetrack didn't move from where he was. His eyes widened and he dropped the snowball he was holding. Blink ran towards me, grabbing Race by the arm on the way over.

"How do ya like Brooklyn?" Itey asked. I shrugged. "It's alright..." I said. "Not better dan heah, of course." Skittery said, grinning. "Of course not." I replied, laughing. It was so great to be with people who actually had character. Who actually liked to joke around and laugh. To be with people who were actually my friends.

"Heya Race." I said softly, trying to smile at him. He stared at me for a second. I couldn't tell if he was angry or upset with me or just confused. "Hey." He said finally, getting the gleam back in his eye.

As I kept my eyes on him the familiar feeling of butterflies in my stomach came back. Then something hit me in the face. Hard.

"Dat's for not comin' back to see us in so long!" Mush yelled, beaming. The other guys laughed. "I'll soak ya for dat!" I screamed, wiping the snow off my face and running towards him. Mush tried to run away, but he tripped over a combination of the snow and his own feet.

I pinned him down and began pelting him with snowballs. Since I was hovering over him, I just continuously threw snowball after snowball down at his chest. He would stop his fits of laughter only to yell "ow!" with each snowball I hit him with.

"Race!! Race, help me!" He shouted, trying to crawl away. Race grinned and began running towards me, full speed. He knocked me over and we went tumbling to the ground. We both tried to pin the other down in the snow, but neither of us could.

Then Race somehow won, pinning me down on my back. His face was so close to mine that I could hear his breathing. I stared up at him with my mouth slightly open, trying to catch my breath. Our gazes locked and Racetrack's smirk disappeared. I wanted to kiss him so badly, but Race looked up and the others were watching us.

We both scrambled to our feet with our faces beet red. I brushed the snow off my clothes and Race did the same, clearing his throat. I glanced up at the other guys as they exchanged looks and grinned at each other.

"A'right, well, if you two are done..." Blink said, looking at Race. "Can it, Blink..." Racetrack grumbled. "Ya wanna come back to da lodgin' house for a while to warm up, Haze?" Blink continued.

I shook my head. "Nah, I really can't... I gotta be back in Brooklyn before it gets dark. But thanks, guys. It's been great seein' all of ya." I said, waving to them and heading towards the park exit. "Bye, Haze!" they called after me.  
Blink crossed his arms and shot Race a look. Smirking, he said "You're not gonna let her go alone, are ya?" Racetrack narrowed his eyes at Kid Blink.

"One day ya gonna get soaked for dat mouth a' yours..." Race mumbled, following after me.

"Ya know ya wanted to anyway!" Blink called after him. I heard fits of laughter from the guys behind us, but both Race and I refused to turn around.

---------

"Ya don't gotta go wit me, Race." I said as we walked down the street. "Not dat I don't want ya heah or nuttin'..." I added quickly. "It's just cold, and Brooklyn ain't that close by, ya know?"

Racetrack shrugged. "I don't mind." He said. "Besides, it's getting dark. I wouldn't want ya to get hoit." I smiled and looked down at my feet as I walked. Snowflakes started falling from the sky again. Slowly at first, but then the snow became heavier.

I shivered and put my hands in my pockets to keep them warm. "Ya want me jacket, Haze?" Racetrack said, starting to take off his coat. I smiled and shook my head. "No, Race... I'm fine. But thanks." I replied. He nodded and pulled his jacket back on.

We didn't say much, and if we did it was small talk. Racetrack seemed upset about something. Quieter than he usually was. He didn't make one wise-crack during the entire walk, which was pretty uncommon for him.

We reached the Brooklyn Bridge and started to cross. About halfway across, I looked to the side and noticed that Racetrack wasn't walking with me anymore. Turning around, I saw he had stopped a few feet back. He was leaning forward against the ledge and looking down at the water with a vacant look on his face.

I turned around and walked over to him, taking a spot right next to him. Leaning on the ledge just like he was, I followed his gaze onto the water. "Pretty, ain't it? I think I prefer it in da summer, but it sure is nice when it's snowin' out 'nd-"

"Why didn't you come back?" Race interrupted suddenly, turning to me. I sensed anger in his voice and in his eyes, but the rest of his face was completely neutral.

"I... I couldn't." was all I could say. I'd been expecting him to ask, but I didn't really have an answer prepared for him. "It's been almost four months, Haze! Four months and ya mean to tell ya couldn't find one spare day to come to Manhattan?!"

"I lost track of time, I'se been busy..." I said, turning my head away. "Yeah, well maybe it's dat easy for you to forget 'bout things... but it ain't for me!" He said, raising his voice now.

"No, Race... Listen to me..." I tried. He wouldn't listen. "Ya know _every single day _I went down to Brooklyn? And it wasn't for da races, neither. I could care less 'bout dem at this point. It was because I was hopin' I would run into _you_." He yelled. "I even went by da lodgin' house lookin' for ya. Dats how desperate I was to talk to ya, and god knows very few things on dis earth can make me willin'ly cross paths wit da Brooklyn newsies!"

"I couldn't come back, okay!? For dis exact reason! Ya think it was easy for me to just walk out and not be able to see ya for months!?" I said. Racetrack shrugged. "Sure seemed like it!" By this time we were both yelling.

"Yeah, well it wasn't! You've been da only thing on me mind since I'se been in Brooklyn, and I knew if I saw ya again den I wouldn't be able to say goodbye this time!" I replied.

"So den why'd you choose to come back _now_!?" He shouted. I opened my mouth to answer, but the words were stopped. Before I could react he had already grabbed me and pulled me towards him. His lips crashed down on mine and he wrapped his arms around me, pulling me closer.

At first I was completely taken by surprise, but then I closed my eyes and my hands found their way to the back of his neck. After a while he stopped kissing me, but he didn't pull his body away. He smiled at me and lightly brushed a piece of hair out of my face with his hand.

I couldn't say anything. My heart was beating too fast and my knees were too weak. "I'se been waitin' to do dat since the minute I pulled away da foist time." He said. I responded by smiling and giving him another short kiss on the lips.

Then I rested my head on his chest, closing my eyes. His arms became tighter around my body and he lightly kissed my forehead. "We better get ya back..." He whispered. "Da snow's startin' to get heavier."

-------

-Thank you for reading

-Please review

-I'll have another chapter tomorrow.

-By the way, this story is almost to the end.


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the newsies besides Haze.

WWAAZZZZZZUUUPPP!?

Ahem. Sorry about that. But seriously. How's it going? Everyone's good? Well, that's nice to hear.

--START--

It must have been two in the morning, but I was still wide awake. Every time I thought about Race, I found myself smiling. I started missing him the second he dropped me off at the lodging house. I wanted more than anything to just stay with him.

I turned over on my side, only to roll over onto my back again a few minutes later. It was useless. I sighed and closed my eyes, but the slightest noise seemed to keep me awake. Even the newsies' calm breathing sounded a million times louder than it was.

I watched the shadows on the far wall for a while as my foot subconsciously tapped against the bedpost. I had too much on my mind to sit still, never mind sleep.

Tanker, who slept in the bunk above me, groaned. "Haze, if you don't stop shakin' dis damn bed, I'll soak ya so hard da bruises alone will get ya customers for a month." He mumbled, obviously still half asleep.

"Sorry, Tanker..." I whispered, stilling my foot. He muttered something else beneath his breath, rolled over, and fell back to sleep again.

I couldn't take this anymore. I thought I could avoid Race before that night, but now I knew I couldn't. Not after what happened.

This was the reason I didn't go back to Manhattan for four months. I knew if saw him again I wouldn't be able to stay away from him. And I was right. I had to be with him.

I wanted to talk to Spot about it as soon as I could. I wouldn't be able to sleep until I did. I knew I should let him sleep and wait until morning, but I was too anxious to get an answer out of him. I got up silently from my bed and went over to his room. The door was open a little bit and I peeked in. He was asleep in his bed.

I went over to him, being as quiet as possible. "Spot..." I whispered, shaking his arm lightly. He groaned and rolled over, facing away from me. "C'mon, Spot. Wake up, I'se gotta talk wit ya." I whispered.

"What are ya... what are ya..." He mumbled into his pillow. His voice faded out and he was quiet again. "Conlon, I can't stay in Brooklyn any more..." I whispered, not sure if he was even awake.

"What?" He muttered, lifting his head up and opening one of his eyes. "I can't stay heah anymore." I said. "What are ya talkin' bout, Haze?" He mumbled, sitting up.

"I think I gotta go back to Manhattan. To stay, dis time." I whispered. "Wha? Why?" He asked. I didn't answer him. Instead I looked down at the floor. Spot searched my face for an answer. "It's that Race guy. Da one dat dropped ya off today, ain't it?" He asked finally.

I nodded and he sighed. "A'right, Haze. We'll talk more 'bout dis in the mornin'. For now, get some sleep because ya obviously ain't in da right state of mind if ya got enough noive to wake up Spot Conlon in da middle of da night." He said, smirking at me.

When we both got up in the morning, Spot and I sold our papes together. We talked about what I said when I woke him up the night before. I told him why I needed to leave Brooklyn, and he agreed that if I had to then I should.  
It was late afternoon when we finished selling, and Spot helped me get my stuff together back at the lodging house. We were standing outside now, saying goodbye.

"Ya shoah dis is what ya want, Haze?" Spot asked, handing me my extra sets of clothes. I nodded and took a deep breath. "Yeah, I think so." I replied.  
"A'right. Well, keep in mind. Dis ain't set in stone or nuttin'. If ya ever need a place to stay, dere's always gonna be a free bunk for ya heah." Spot said. I pulled him in for a hug. "Conlon... thanks so much. For everythin' you've done for me. I appreciate it a whole lot."

"A'right, a'right. No getting all mushy on me. I'se gonna see ya again. Ya just goin' to Manhattan. Ya ain't dyin' or nuttin." He said. I smiled at him. "Now, ya shoah ya don't want me to walk wit ya?" He asked.

I nodded. "I'm sure. Ya don't gotta go outta ya way. I'll be fine." I replied. "Okay. Jist watch ya back, alright?" Spot pulled me in for another quick hug. "See ya around, Haze." he said.

--------

I was halfway there and it was already getting dark. My hands were starting to become numb and the snow had seeped in through my shoes, making my whole body chilled.

I forgot about the cold when I suddenly got the feeling I was being followed. At first I figured I was just being paranoid, but I thought I could hear soft footsteps on the snow behind me.

I started to walk faster down the street. I turned my head around and looked behind me, but there was no one. _See? You're just gettin' yourself worked up over nothing... _I told myself.

My eyes wandered down to the ground and then I really started to panic. There were fresh footprints in the snow. They weren't mine and I could have sworn they weren't there before.

I started to run down the street, my heart beating like crazy. I looked behind me to make sure I wasn't being followed and I ran straight into someone. I almost fell backwards, but they caught me.

"Woah... careful there." The person said. I knew that voice. I looked up and came face to face with Racetrack. "Haze?!" He said, confused. "Whadda ya doin' heah?" I tried to answer him but I was too out of breath. "Ya look terrified, what happened?!" He asked, holding me out at arms length.

"I... I think som-" I stopped myself, realizing I was overreacting. No one was following me. My mind was playing tricks on me. "Nevermind. It's stupid." I said. He shot me a confused look, but changed the subject.

"You're... you're not headin' over to Manhattan, are ya?" he asked, his eyes hopeful. I didn't have to say anything. The smile that spread across my face told him that I was.

"Really!? To stay!?" he said, grinning. I motioned to the pile of clothes I was holding underneath my arm. "I don't just carry around me entire wardrobe for kicks, Higgins." I said, smirking.

His laugh made my knees go weak. "Watch it, Haze. Da wisecracks are my thing." He joked. "Now, may I have da pleasure of walkin' wit ya?" He asked, holding out his hand.

I sighed and rolled my eyes at him, but I wasn't able to contain my smile. "Just can it and let's go." I said, starting to walk. Race followed me and caught up to my side.

I was walking close to the buildings, and he was walking more towards the curb. We weren't really carrying on a conversation. I was just enjoying being with him.

Suddenly, a hand reached out from behind me and covered my mouth. Just as I was about to scream for Race, they kneed me in the back, knocking all the air out of me. I dropped the clothes I was holding and I was dragged backwards into an alleyway.

When I was completely consumed in the darkness of the alleyway, I was thrown against the brick wall. I hit it hard and collapsed into the snow. Looking up, I saw a shaded figure leaning against the opposite wall.  
I tried to get up, but my arms refused to support me. "I wouldn't advise gettin' up, princess." His voice was colder than the air as he took a step towards me, allowing a little bit of light to shine on his face.

It was one of the Delancey brothers. I couldn't recognize which one since I always kept my distance from them, heeding the warnings from the other newsies.

I tried to back up, but I was cornered in between him and the wall. He began inching towards me. From outside the alley, I heard yelling and struggling. As quickly as it started, it suddenly stopped again. "Racetrack!" I screamed. "I'm tellin' ya, keep quiet, goil..." he said, slipping brass knuckles onto his fingers.

Another figure appeared at the opening of the alleyway. "Morris, would ya shut her up!? Da last thing we need is her attractin' attention..." the other one said. I assumed he was Oscar.

"What did ya do wit da guy?" Morris asked, keeping his eyes on me. "He was small. Didn't take much effort to bring him down." Oscar replied. "Race...Oh god..." I muttered, suddenly terrified. What if he was really hurt?

"Dat's right, goil." Oscar said, turning to me. "Ya little friend ain't gettin' up for a while. He had it comin', though. I'se seen him 'round Manhattan.

Walkin' around like he's somethin' tough, always got a cigar hangin' outta his mouth. Ya should tell him smokin' so much will stunt his growth even more..." he said, sneering. "That is, if ya ever see him again..."

Morris laughed and the two of them began closing in on me. I kept telling myself to get up and run for it but my body was too petrified to move. Just as they were a few feet from me, my legs finally started to work and I tried to dart in between them.

Before I could escape, one of them grabbed me by my shirt and held me up against the wall. I was hanging there about a foot off the ground. I tried to struggle away but he kept a tight grip.

-------

This story has about 2 more chapters before it's finished.

Please review if you can. Thanks for reading, and maybe I'll have another one out by tonight.


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the original characters from the movie "Newsies."

Hello my loves :) Alright, so here's what happened. This chapter right here is about 4 pages on the program that I write on. There's about 2 more pages to the story (a little less, actually) and I was contemplating on posting it in this chapter or splitting it up. Since 6 pages is a whole lot, I figured I'd split it up into the next chapter. So the ending's gonna be way short. I dunno why I felt the need to tell you that. Aaanndd here we go.

--START--

"Get away from her, Morris..." I heard a voice say. The three of us looked over and saw Racetrack standing in the mouth of the alleyway. He looked like he could barely keep himself up, but his eyes were confident and angry. "I thought I took care of ya, but I guess you're stupid enough to come back for more..." Oscar said.

Racetrack weakly ran in and tried to help me but Oscar was too quick. He blocked Race's path and soaked him hard in the stomach. Race clutched his abdomen and fell to the ground, coughing.

"If ya get up, I'll break ya arm!" Oscar warned. Since Morris was distracted, I lifted my fist to punch him. However, he stopped my arm and punched me instead. My left eye surged with pain where he just hit me.

I saw Racetrack trying to get up from the pile of snow he had collapsed in. Quickly, I kneed Morris in the stomach forcing him to let go of me. I dropped to the ground and ran over to where Race was.

"I warned ya..." Oscar said, grabbing Race's arm and smashing it against his knee. Racetrack shouted out in agony, and Oscar raised Racetrack's arm to smash it again.

Before he could, I grabbed a plank of wood off the nearby crates. Whacking him as hard as I could in the head, I knocked him unconscious. I hurried to where Racetrack was and I kneeled in the snow next to him.

"Race... Race, are you okay?!" I said. He sat up and his arm looked all bruised. "Duck." He whispered. It took me a second to get what he was saying, but I understood just in time. Crouching down, I saw Morris throw a punch right above my head from behind me.

Racetrack stuck out his foot and tripped Morris, bringing him down. He got up and stood above Morris, bringing his good fist down hard on his face. "If you _ever _go near her again, I'll soak da both of ya so hard not even ya uncle Weasel's gonna want ya anymore."

Morris backed away, trying to get up. He had a terrified look on his face. By this time, his brother had woken up and was already scrambling towards the street. "Ya better watch ya back, ya worthless street rats! Next time ya might not be so lucky!" Morris yelled, disappearing onto the streets with his brother behind him.

Race breathed heavily for a few seconds as he watched the opening. Then he dropped to a sitting position and examined his arm. "Racetrack..." I said, crawling over to him.

He looked up at me. He picked up his good arm and reached over to me. As he lightly touched the area underneath my eye, I winced. "You're pretty bruised up dere, Haze... You okay?" he asked. "Forget me, I'm fine. Look at your arm!" I said.

He shrugged. "I'se been through worse." He said, trying to smile. "C'mere." I replied, helping him to his feet. "Sit on one of dese crates so ya don't freeze to death. I'll be right back." I said, leaving him in the alleyway.

I returned a few seconds later holding the clothes I had dropped. I let all but one fall to the ground again, while I ripped the sleeves off. "What are ya doin?" he asked.

I ignored him and kneeled down beside the crate. "Sit still. This may hurt a bit but try not to move..." I said. I lightly picked up his arm and started wrapping it in the cloth. He winced and closed his eyes, but he stayed as still as he could. "I'm sorry, Race..." I said, hating to cause him pain.

"Ya think it's broken?" I asked. He shook his head. "Nah, I didn't hear anythin' crack." He said, smirking. I sighed. "Only you could have a sense of humor in a situation like dis, Race." I replied. He let out a weak laugh. "Seriously, though. It's probably just sprained. I never broke anythin' but I assume it would hoit a lot more than dis."

"They coulda really hoit ya." I said, still wrapping his arm. "What ya did for me was real nice. Puttin' yaself in danger like dat. Stupid, but nice. Thanks, Race..."

"I don't care if it was stupid. I'se just glad I ran into ya tonight. Udderwise they woulda outnumbered ya two to one. Den who knows what woulda happened." He said.

"Race... what were you doing around heah anyway? We're at least an hour away from Manhattan." I said, finishing his arm and looking up at him. He was quiet for a few seconds. "Ya didn't expect me to just let ya leave again without comin' afta ya this time, did ya?" he said.

I smiled at him. I looked down so my hair fell into my face and hid the fact that I was blushing. Finally forcing my gaze away, I picked up his other hand. "C'mon, Race. We betta get back into Manhattan before we get ourselves into any more trouble."

-------

"I really _really _think we should go to the lodging house, Racetrack... Ya should let Kloppman check out dat arm of yours." I said. He tugged on my hand. "C'mon, Haze... It ain't broken or nuttin'. It don't even hoit much anymore. Let's just stop by for a few minutes. Please? Probably all da guys are already there..." Race begged.

I sighed. We had just arrived back in Manhattan. I thought it was a better idea to go back to the lodging house and get his arm looked at, incase it turned out to be something serious. Racetrack, on the other hand, didn't think it was a big deal. He was set on going to Tibby's.

"Please?" he said again. He raised my hand up to his mouth and kissed it softly, but he kept his eyes on me. I sighed. "Fine. But don't come cryin' to me when ya find out ya gotta get ya arm chopped off or somethin'."

He laughed and pulled me in the direction of Tibby's. "Ya worry too much, Haze."

The little bell at the top of the door rang when we opened it. I stepped inside and was thankful for the warmth, not realizing how numb my hands had become.

There were a few other people in the restaurant, but the newsies were the majority of the people there. They were sitting in the corner of the room seated at a few tables, just like they always were.

Race and I started walking towards them. One by one, they noticed our presence and were silent. "Race, why are dey starin' at us like dat?" I whispered. He shrugged and kept walking towards the back of the restaurant. "Could be because we're all bruised up..." he replied. "Or... it could be because I sorta..."

"You sorta what?" I asked, nudging him. "I sorta, uh... told the guys that you might be me goil?" He replied, giving me an innocent look and grinning. I laughed and playfully punched him the arm. "And what say do I have in dis?" I asked.

By this time we had reached the tables where the newsies were sitting. "Race! What happened to ya arm!?" Bumlets asked. Racetrack shrugged. "Nuttin' dat ain't gonna heal." He said simply, taking a seat next to Mush. "Look at Haze's eye! It's all bruised up!" Snipeshooter pointed out. "Aw, c'mon. It ain't dat bad. So it'll just be easier to sell for da next few months, dats all." I said, grinning.

I sat down next to Blink. "What happened?" he asked. All the other newsies were waiting for an answer, too. "We just had a run in wit da Delancey's is all." Race said. "But it's a'right. Dey was runnin' off down da street when we was finished with 'em." Race added, winking at me.

They all laughed and I smiled at him from across the table. The rest of the newsies greeted me and went back to their conversations. "Ya just in time." Blink said. "We'se just about to order."

I talked to the guys about what I had been up to and how stuff was going. Except for the ones who were at Central Park the day before, I hadn't talked to any of the Manhattan newsies in a few months.

I truly did miss them. I loved how they could all just joke around with each other and not get the least bit offended. They were so much fun to be with, even if we were only sitting around waiting for our food to come.

"So... you and Race, huh?" Blink asked when none of the other newsies were listening. He smirked. I sighed, but it was hard to contain my smile. "Put a lid on it, Blink." He held up his hands in defense. "A'right, A'right. I just wanna tell ya, that Race's been one of me good friends for a while now. And I'se never seen him so happy over a goil before."

I looked up and stared across the table at the wise-ass gambler I had fallen so hard for. He was telling a joke to Mush and the both of them were hysterical laughing, barely even able to breathe. "I think he loves ya, Haze." Blink whispered, leaning over to me.

-------

One more chapter to go, guys. I'm totally pumped about this!! Are you guys pumped about this!? Because I'm way pumped...

I'm sorry. A little too much caffeine tonight.

Anywho, you guys know the drill. Thanks for reading, and reviews would be great.


	15. Chapter 15

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the original characters from the movie "Newsies." They all belong to Disney. The only one I own is Haze.

Alright... So I was going to wait until tomorrow to post this chapter. But then I thought, hey, it's short. Plus 'PJ' asked me to, and I guess I owe SOME sort of thanks for all the reviews I got.

So here we go guys. LAST CHAPTER, MAN!!!

--START--

I finished my dinner and continued talking to Kid Blink for a while. Suddenly I felt someone loosely wrap their arms around my neck from behind. I turned my head slightly to see who it was and Race kissed me on the cheek.

"Hey Haze... Ya finished?" he asked. I smiled and nodded. "Yep." I replied. "Ya wanna come back to da lodgin' house wit me? Me arms startin' to feel a little sore." He said.

"Yeah, sure." I replied, standing up and putting my jacket on. "I'll see ya guys later." I said, tossing my share of the money onto the table.

When we stepped outside the door, Race pulled me to the side of the building instead of towards the lodging house. "What are ya doin'?" I asked, laughing. "The lodgin' house is da other way."

A grin formed on his face. "My arm ain't sore. I just needed an excuse to get ya away from dose guys long enough to aks ya somethin'."

"A simple 'I gotta talk to ya.' would have done da trick, Higgins." I said, smirking. He shrugged. "Yeah, but I didn't want attract attention from da guys. You know how dey are wit this stuff."

"With what stuff? Whadda ya have to aks me?" I replied. He put his hands on my waist and pulled me towards him so our faces were pretty close. "Well, ya aksed me if ya got a say in bein' me goil or not... so, will ya be me goil?" he asked, smirking.

The butterflies came back into my stomach. I grinned and nodded quickly. "A'course I will." I said. Race's arm wrapped around my waist. I put my hands on Racetrack's shoulders and he leaned towards me. Placing one of his hands on the side of my face, he kissed me.

We heard cheering and whistling start up from behind us. "Way to go, Higgins!" one of them yelled. The others burst out laughing.

We pulled away and looked to the building. The newsies were all crowded in one of the huge windows of the restaurant, watching us and laughing like crazy. I could feel my face turning red. "So much for not attractin' their attention." I said, awkwardly rubbing the back of my neck.

Racetrack took my hand and we started walking towards the lodging house. The rest of the guys eventually caught up to us. "Da foist person to make a comment gets soaked. Ya understand?" Race said.

"Make a comment bout what? You and Haze outside Tibby's?" Snoddy said, smirking. "I warned ya!" Race yelled, scooping up some snow and hurling it at Snoddy. It hit him on the shoulder. "Ow! You'se gonna pay for dat, Race!" He screamed, laughing.

He threw a snowball back at him, but it flew past Race and hit Mush in the head. Mush was knocked into Cowboy, who had already picked up a snowball and was ready to fire.

"Race... Look, take it easy, a'right? You're gonna hoit ya arm even more..." I said. "What are ya, me mudda?" Race replied, grinning. With that, he picked up a snowball and hit me straight in the face. My mouth dropped as I stared at him. Then my eyes narrowed. "Sprained arm or not, you'se about to get your ass kicked by a goil!" I said, running towards him.

----

About half an hour later, we all returned to the lodging house soaking wet. One way or another, all the newsies ended up getting caught in the snowball fight.

I changed my clothes and went downstairs to the lobby where everyone else had gone once they dried off. Most of the guys were playing cards, but Race was sitting alone on the couch near the fire. I sat down next to him and he immediately put his arm around me.

"Kloppman looked at me arm. Said it ain't too bad, should be better in 'bout a week." Race explained. "I'm glad it ain't serious." I replied, resting my head on his shoulder. "I told ya it wasn't. See? Ya worry too much, Haze." Race said.

"Ah, shut up." I replied. He laughed and kissed the top of my head. "We sure sound like a couple, da way we talk to each other." Race said sarcastically.  
I smiled and closed my eyes. Hearing him say that we were a couple made me unbelievably happy. "Oh, and by da way..." Race said. "Blink was right about what he said. The whole thing 'bout me lovin' you. You really should tell him to keep his voice down when he's tryin' to tell secrets."

I picked up my head and stared at him. Slowly, he leaned in and kissed me again. "I love ya too, Race." I muttered without pulling away. I could feel him smile in the kiss.

He broke the kiss and pressed his forehead against mine. "Ya love me enough to let me drag ya to da races wit me every day?" He asked hopefully. "Nah, not that much." I replied, smiling.

Race frowned. "A'right, a'right, I'se just kiddin'. Da truth is, I'd follow ya anywhere if ya asked me to." I said. Racetrack smiled and his eyes lit up. "I'd follow ya anywhere, too, Haze." He replied. "Except da Brooklyn lodgin' house. Havin' to go dere for ya once is enough for me." Race said, grinning.

THE END.

I hope you guys enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Thanks so much to everyone who read and reviewed (Especially those who reviewed often). You guys are the greatest. No, seriously. THE greatest.

It seems I have no life. It also seems that I have an unhealthy obsessed with Newsies. You know what that means!?

That's right. More Newsie fanfics on the way. :D


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